Transparency and translucency In the field of optics,
transparency (also called pellucidity or diaphaneity) is the
physical property of allowing light to pass through the material
without being scattered. On a macroscopic scale (one where the
dimensions investigated are much, much larger than the
wavelength of the photons in question), the photons can be said
to follow Snell's Law. Translucency (also called translucence or
translucidity), is a super-set of transparency, allows light to
pass through; but, does not necessarily (again, on the
macroscopic scale) follow Snell's law; the photons can be
scattered at either of the two interfaces where there is a
change in index of refraction, or internally. In other words, a
translucent medium allows the transport of light while a
transparent medium not only allows the transport of light but
allows for the image formation. The opposite property of
translucency is opacity. Transparent materials appear clear,
with the overall appearance of one color, or any combination