The Science Behind How Mirrors Work

By installing mirrors in your home or business, you can make a small space feel a lot larger than it actually is. You can also utilize mirrors as decorative features that will enhance the style of a room and improve the way it looks. It’s why many home and business owners incorporate mirrors into the mix and have mirror replacement in Houston done to replace older mirrors. Find out more about mirrors and how they work below.

Mirrors are created through a process called silvering.

Over the last thousand years or so, the process of creating mirrors has changed a lot. Once upon a time, it took so much effort to create mirrors that only the wealthiest of people could afford them. Today, mirrors are created by spraying silver or aluminum that has been heated up onto a cool sheet of glass. This creates the mirrored surface that you recognize when you look at a mirror.

Mirrors work by using specular reflection to reflect light.

When light hits an uneven surface, that light scatters everywhere during what is called diffuse reflection. However, when it hits a mirror, light doesn’t scatter at all. The light will hit the smooth surface of the mirror and bounce back intact due to specular reflection, which is why you are able to see an undisturbed image on the surface of a mirror when you stand in front of it. A mirror allows you to see a lightprint of yourself as well as other items in the area.

Mirrors can be positioned in many ways to reflect light from different angles.

If you are thinking about adding mirrors to your home or office, there are quite a few types of mirrors that you can use to create a sense of space. From a wall mirror that will create an added sense of depth in a room to smaller decorative mirrors that will reflect light in all sorts of interesting ways, you can put mirrors to good use and see the benefits of using them right away.