Effect of different curing modes on the Vickers hardness number and curing depth of bulk fill composites

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to compare the Vickers hardness number (VHN) and depth of cure of two types of bulk fill composites in high, low and soft light curing modes. Materials & Methods: In this experimental study, 60 cylindrical samples were fabricated from two types of bulk fill composites (Tetric N-Ceram and X-tra fil) in a Teflon mold with one semi-circular notch. Then, the samples were randomly divided into the following three subgroups based on the curing modes (high, low and soft) and were light-cured. The samples were removed from the molds, and their VHN and depth of cure were measured. Data were analyzed using One-way ANOVA and Tukey’s post hoc test at the significance level of P<0.05. Results: The mean VHN of the X-tra fil composite was significantly higher than that of Tetric N-Ceram composite (P<0.001). The depth of cure of X-tra fil composite was also significantly higher than that of Tetric N-Ceram composite in high and soft curing modes (P