Comparing the Effectiveness of Photoluminescent Powders for the Development of Latent Fingerprints on Complex Surfaces

Abstract

Since the end of the 19th century, criminal investigation began to use the invisible impressions of the fingerprints that people leave on the crime scene to relate them to suspected criminal acts. To make them visible, different technologies have been developed over the last 120 years. One of them is the use of physical powders, and within this group it is also possible to identify different types of powder. Photoluminescent powders (fluorescent and phosphorescent) have a specific application for those surfaces considered “complex”. This research will investigate the quality of these two types of developers on different surfaces to weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of prioritizing the use of each one of them.