Journal Published Online: 01 July 1980
Volume 25, Issue 3

A New Approach to the Microscopical Examination and Comparison of Synthetic Fibers Encountered in Forensic Science Cases

CODEN: JFSCAS

Abstract

This paper describes a refined approach to the problems of identification and comparison of synthetic fibers encountered in forensic science case work. The necessary apparatus consists of a polarizing microscope equipped with a Mettler hot stage. Observations concerning the variation of a fiber's birefringence with temperature have been found to be very useful, both for determining the generic type of an unknown fiber and for detecting subtle differences among fibers of the same generic type from different sources. Data, including semilogarithmic plots of birefringence as a function of temperature, are given for nine different generic types of synthetic fibers.

Author Information

Petraco, N
New York City Police Department
DeForest, PR
John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York City
Harris, H
New York City Crime Laboratory
Pages: 12
Price: $25.00
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Stock #: JFS11259J
ISSN: 0022-1198
DOI: 10.1520/JFS11259J