>I didn't mention them since they have nothing to do with synthetic vs natural dyes though -- they're properties of whatever materials the dyes become part of.
I guess that is what I'm getting at, that today's conception of what a "dye" is, is that it is a substance which is added to a material not changing the reflective, translucent etc properties of that material (which is itself probably a simplification - I can't imagine dying a fabric doesn't change these at least a little bit).
What I'm suggesting as an advancement is perhaps not called a "dye", but nevertheless would be a new way to not only change the color of the target object, but also the translucence, iridescence, reflectivity, etc.
I know there is already stuff in this area - there was some laptop case I saw recently that had some kind of micro-texture on it (the opposite of a polish, I guess) in order to make the black color of it more matte (if I recall correctly). Likewise, anti-reflective coatings and privacy screens seem like a ubiquitous, primitive example of what I'm talking about. I'm sure there are others.
I guess that is what I'm getting at, that today's conception of what a "dye" is, is that it is a substance which is added to a material not changing the reflective, translucent etc properties of that material (which is itself probably a simplification - I can't imagine dying a fabric doesn't change these at least a little bit).
What I'm suggesting as an advancement is perhaps not called a "dye", but nevertheless would be a new way to not only change the color of the target object, but also the translucence, iridescence, reflectivity, etc.
I know there is already stuff in this area - there was some laptop case I saw recently that had some kind of micro-texture on it (the opposite of a polish, I guess) in order to make the black color of it more matte (if I recall correctly). Likewise, anti-reflective coatings and privacy screens seem like a ubiquitous, primitive example of what I'm talking about. I'm sure there are others.