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What is forensics and How does UV Light effect it?
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How does Ultraviolet Light Help Solve Crimes?
UV Light
UV light is a form of radiation that is not visible to the human eye.
UV light is recommended by the FBI for investigation and is often used in forensics to reveal bodily fluids such as:
- blood
- saliva
- semen
Because of its ability to reveal things that are not visible to the human eye, it is also called an ALS (alternate light source)
Ultraviolet radiation is between wavelengths of
about 400 nanometers on the visible light side and
about 10 nm on the x-ray side.
(1 nanometer is 10^-9 meters)
How does UV light affect forensics?
What is forensics?
Forensics is the science of solving crimes.
Forensic scientists study crime scenes to uncover evidence to find out who committed a crime, more specifically a murder.
How does UV Light help in forensics?
UV light allows forensic scientists to see evidence that they would otherwise be unable to see with the naked human eye. UV light illuminates substances such as:
- blood
- sweat/oils
- fingerprints
- bruises
- bite marks
- tattoos
- bodily fluids
How are fingerprints found?
- Forensic scientists use RUVIS (reflective ultraviolet imaging system) to find fingerprints
- RUVIS consists of a ray of Ultraviolet light that must be positioned in a proper angle onto the surface that has suspected prints. RUVIS devices use 254nm UV light.
- The angle of the light beam is important because the light must only scatter and reflect the image of the print so that the ridges are seen in contrast of the background.Ideally, prints should be illuminated in contrast of the background, instead of the other way around.
Fingerprints
Why are fingerprints such important evidence?
Fingerprints are important pieces of evidence because every single person has their own unique print.
When crime scene investigators find fingerprints using UV light, they are able to search the print within a special database which holds all of the fingerprints of citizens in the United States.
Blood and UV light
Ultraviolet lights illuminate blood
When blood is exposed to UV light, it absorbs all of that light and doesn’t reflect any light back
Stains that aren’t blood fade into the background of the photo so and they blend in so well that it is impossible to photograph them
UV light makes it possible to see blood that has been concealed by paint which cannot be seen by the naked eye.