Influence of paper surface characteristics on digital printing quality

Today’s demands for high quality digital printing emphasise the importance of paper surface. This work demonstrates the effects of surface topography and appearance on printing quality. Samples were printed in black and white with a laser jet printer under identical conditions, using different types of paper in order to have different surface properties. The papers and printed samples were evaluated with atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), gloss meter, spectrophotometer, and densitometer. Results showed that the decrease in surface roughness increased optical density and print quality. Moreover, the gloss of the papers significantly influenced print quality by decreasing it. The effect of the colourimetric values of the papers on the colourimetric values of the final printed samples were less significant in higher optical density printed samples.