 Pigment

A pigment is a material that changes the colour of light through selective absorption and scattering, commonly while dispersed as particles in another material. Particle size and dispersion therefore matter alongside molecular or crystal composition.

Pigments include inorganic solids and organic materials such as melanin. Their colour is an optical property, while properties such as chemical stability and interaction with a binder determine how that colour survives in a coating or biological structure.