Definition: Dye-Sublimation uses high heat and solid dyes to produce photo lab-quality images. Dye-Sub printers contain a roll of transparent film made up of page-sized panels of color. Solid dyes in cyan, magenta, yellow, and black are embedded in the film. Print head heating elements vaporize the inks which adhere to a specially-coated paper. As the ink cools it re-solidifies on the paper. Color intensity is controlled by precise variations in temperature.
Dye-sublimation printers lay down color in continuous tones one color at a time, instead of dots of ink. Because the color is absorbed into the paper rather than sitting on the surface, the output is more photo-realistic, more durable, and less vulnerable to fading than other ink technologies.
Also Known As: dye-sub | dye sub
Alternate Spellings: dye sublimation (no hyphen)
Examples:
Some inkjet printers employ a hybrid dye-sublimation process. The color is contained in cartridges, heated, vaporized, and laid down a strip at a time rather a page at a time. Dye-sublimation printing methods are favored by some graphic designers for high-end proofing and by some businesses who want to produce the best possible color materials in-house.
