Reactions of dental enamel with superficially applied fluorides: electron spectroscopic investigations

Electron spectroscopy combined with argon ion etching was applied for studying reactions of fluoride with dental enamel. Using this assembly to alternately record the spectra and etch the surface, depth profiles of topmost surface enamel can be obtained. The hyperfine depth resolution of the technique provided new information on the distribution of fluoride and its reaction products in the outermost layers of dental enamel.