effect of laser treatment on surface morphology of indirect composite resin: scanning electron microscope (sem) evaluation

introduction: the aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the scanning electron microscope (sem) of indirect composite conditioned by erbium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (er:yag) laser, neodymium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet (nd:yag) laserand carbon dioxide (co2) laser. methods: 18 indirect composite blocks (gc gradia da2, japan) with 15 × 10 × 10 mm dimensions were made. the bonding surface of these blocks were polished, then the samples were divided into six groups as follow: er:yag laser with output power of 0.5 w and frequency of 10 hz, nd:yag laser with output power of 0.25, 0.5 w and frequency of 10 hz, co2 laser with output power of 0.5 w and frequency of 10 hz and 5 hz, and no treatment. then, the surfaces were evaluated by sem. results: irregularities were observed in er:yag laser samples compared to control group that produced suitable retention for adhesion of cements. nd:yag and co2 lasers showed melting areas. conclusion: among different lasers, er:yag laser can be used as an alternative technique for surface treatment of indirect composites.