One common challenge in molecular modeling is making rendered images both visually clear and scientifically appropriate. Whether you’re trying to showcase the hydrophobic pocket of a protein binding site or emphasize a drug interacting with a critical residue, the appearance of the scene can alter perception and interpretation.
That’s where material presets in SAMSON can play a major role. When you’re using the Cycles Renderer in SAMSON, you have access to a rich set of built-in material presets for metals, glass, plastics, and even emissive surfaces. These presets help turn molecular data into effective scientific visuals—without diving into complex rendering software.
What are material presets in SAMSON?
Material presets are predefined appearances that simulate the way different surfaces interact with light—how shiny, rough, transparent, or glowing they are. In SAMSON, these presets are easily applied within the Inspector, and they affect how structures look while you’re using the Cycles path tracing renderer.
Categories of Materials Available
Material categories help to quickly adapt the look of your models. Here’s a breakdown of what’s available:
- Metallic: Gold, Copper, Steel, Carbon Fiber, etc.
- Semi-metallic: Brass, Bronze, Rust, Epoxy
- Smooth: Plastic, Latex, Marble, Paint
- Rough: Concrete, Velvet, Wood
- Emissive: These materials glow—perfect for illustrating active sites or visualizing radiation-based phenomena
- Transparent: Glass, Ice, Jade—these are great for membranes, overlays, or enclosing environments
Once applied, you can refine each material’s parameters—like roughness or reflectivity—right inside the Inspector.
Use Cases in Molecular Modeling
- Emphasizing specific atoms or residues: Use emissive materials to make them visibly stand out in dark environments.
- Representing biological surfaces: Semi-metallic or smooth presets can give a more realistic feel to protein or lipid structures.
- Creating publication-quality figures: Refined visuals with correct lighting and material interpretation help convey scientific messages clearly.
Here’s an example of a ligand rendered with appropriately applied material presets:
And below, another example showing diverse materials combined in a single environment:
Tips to Get Started
- Use Visualization > Trace or press F9 to enable Cycles.
- Select a component of your model and open the Inspector.
- Apply a preset from the appearance list, then optionally fine-tune its parameters.
Having these presets at your fingertips saves a lot of time and helps focus your energy on communicating science—not fighting with rendering tools.
To learn more about using materials in the Cycles Renderer within SAMSON, visit the original documentation page: https://documentation.samson-connect.net/users/latest/rendering/
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net