Áttetszsége

Áttetszsége is a Hungarian term referring to the property of a material to transmit light. The word originates from the verb áttetszik (to become transparent) with the abstract-noun suffixes -ség/-sége, and it can be used in both physical and figurative senses. In physics and engineering, áttetszsége describes how easily light passes through a substance, which distinguishes transparent, translucent, and opaque materials.

In optics, a material with high áttetszsége transmits most of the incident light with minimal scattering, allowing a clear image to be formed. A translucent material lets light pass but scatters it, so shapes or objects on the far side appear blurred. An opaque material blocks light or absorbs most of it, preventing transmission. The measurable quantity most closely associated with áttetszsége is transmittance, T, defined as the ratio of transmitted to incident light intensity (T = Itrans/I0) and usually expressed as a percentage. Transmittance can vary with wavelength, a phenomenon known as spectral or color-dependent áttetszsége. Related concepts include absorbance and scattering (or haze), which describe other ways light interacts with a material.

Factors influencing áttetszsége include material composition, thickness, surface finish, impurities, and coatings, as well as internal microstructure and temperature. Thicker samples typically exhibit lower transmittance, while polished, pure, or properly treated surfaces improve optical clarity. Measurements are commonly performed with spectrophotometers to obtain spectral transmittance curves across the visible or other wavelength ranges.

Beyond physics, the term can be used metaphorically to denote openness or clarity of information, processes, or governance, though in everyday Hungarian it is more common to use terms like átláthatóság for such meanings.