Fingermark development on silver mirror surfaces: A comparative study between mirror chemical delamination assessment
R J Accioly1, E G Silva2, K C Mariotti3
1Departamento de Medicina Legal, Bioética, Medicina do Trabalho, Medicina Física e Reabilitação, Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP 01246-903, Brazil; Biometric Identification Group, Brazilian Federal Police, Foz do Iguaçu, PR 85863-720, Brazil.
Science & Justice : Journal of the Forensic Science Society
|September 10, 2025
Summary
A novel mirror delamination method enhances fingermark detection on silver substrates, outperforming traditional powder and superglue techniques in forensic investigations. This chemical delamination offers an efficient, noncontact alternative for improved fingermark analysis.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Science
- Analytical Chemistry
- Materials Science
Background:
- Human identification is crucial in legal medicine, criminal justice, and humanitarian efforts.
- Fingermark enhancement on silver mirror substrates requires efficient and sensitive methods.
- Established techniques like powder and superglue have limitations in certain applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the efficiency and sensitivity of a novel mirror delamination method against established fingermark enhancement techniques.
- To evaluate the practical applications and limiting factors of the new method.
- To assess the effectiveness of chemical delamination on silver mirror substrates.
Main Methods:
- A fingermark depletion series was used for comparative analysis.
- The novel mirror delamination method was compared with powder, superglue followed by powder and lift, and polarized light techniques.
- Minutiae detection rates were quantified for each method.
Main Results:
- The mirror delamination method detected 227% more minutiae than powder treatment and 23% more than superglue treatment.
- Polarized light illumination detected 6% more minutiae compared to the chemical delamination method.
- The novel method demonstrated superior performance in detecting fingermark details.
Conclusions:
- The silver mirror chemical delamination method is an effective and noncontact alternative for fingermark enhancement.
- This technique offers significant improvements in minutiae detection compared to traditional methods.
- The study highlights the potential of mirror delamination in forensic investigations for obtaining high-quality fingermark images.
