A Physical Hypothesis on the Origin of the Body Image Embe..

The faint body image embedded into the Turin Shroud has not yet explained by science. We present experimental results of excimer laser irradiation (wavelengths 308 nm and 193 nm) of a raw linen fabric and of a linen cloth, seeking for a possible mechanism of image formation. We achieved a permanent coloration of both linens as a threshold effect of the laser beam intensity. The coloration is obtained in a surprisingly narrow range of irradiation parameters: the shorter the laser wavelength, the narrower the range. We also obtained the first direct evidence of latent coloration impressed on linen that appears in a relatively long period (one year) after a laser irradiation that at first did not generate an evident coloration. The comparison of the results of our excimer laser irradiation with the characteristics of the Turin Shroud image suggests we cannot exclude the possibility that a short and intense burst of ultraviolet radiation may have played a role in the formation of the Shroud image.