In dental shade matching, what is the term for a situation where a crown appears to match the patient's teeth in the dental office but looks different at home under incandescent lighting?

Metamerism describes the phenomenon where two surfaces with different spectral reflectance profiles appear identical in color under one illuminant (e.g., daylight or dental office fluorescent light) but appear different under another (e.g., incandescent home lighting). This is a common complaint in cosmetic dentistry. To minimize metamerism, shade selection should be performed under multiple light sources, and ceramic layering should use materials with spectral properties similar to natural tooth enamel.