Decades of experience in ceramic-based CAD/CAM restorative materials have taught us how dental ceramics can be mixed with suitable pigments during the manufacturing process, creating crystalline structures that mimic the optical properties of natural teeth. With Cercon xt ML, we have transferred this idea to one of the most widely used materials in dentistry: Zirconia.

To produce homogenously colored zirconia blanks, two things are of utmost importance—selection of suitable pigments and the procedure for developing and evaluating the tooth shades. This is where True Color Technology comes into play. The pigments must retain their true shade effect—that is, they must remain stable—even after sintering at 1500^o Celsius/2723^o Fahrenheit. And, for the final shade evaluation, the production test blanks must be evaluated for correct shade at every step of the restoration production process in the dental lab, including milling and sintering.

The shade evaluation for Cercon xt ML is based on our experience producing veneering ceramics and on standardized procedures. In addition, the shades under development were subjected to continuous extensive customer reviews both in the Europe and the United States. In comparative tests wherein customers were given restorations produced with Cercon and restorations produced with two leading competitor materials, Cercon was rated best for all 16 classic VITA* shades. [1]

By combining True Color Technology and the Cercon material quality that has been clinically proven for more than 15 years, Cercon xt ML is the new color quality standard for zirconia material in the dental lab.

*VITA is a trademark of VITA Zahnfabrik.
Reference: 1. Data on file, Dentsply Sirona Inc., 2017.