Investigations on the Russel Effect in Woods

A large variety of materials can affect a photographic emulsion, producing, by chemical action, an image on a photographic plate without exposure to light. Russel found that wood could act on photographic film in the dark to produce an image which could be developed. The Russel effect can be observed by placing a wood specimen on the sensitized surface of a photographic plate in total darkness and allowing it to stand undisturbed for a few hours, then developing it in the usual way. The image of the specimen–for example a cross section of teak–appears remarkably clear. Experiments have ruled out pressure or radioactivity as the cause of this phenomenon and produced evidence for a chemical cause. The effect is not hampered by a thick sheet of black paper but it is stopped by mica or glass, indicating that it is vaporographic. Experiments indicate that the effect is not the result of residual luminescence as had been reported by Tiemann. The exact mechanism of the effect is still being investigated.

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