SURFACE COATING FOR A MEDICAL INSTRUMENT, MEDICAL INSTRUMENT HAVING A SURFACE COATING, AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING A SURFACE COATING FOR A MEDICAL INSTRUMENT
A surface coating for a medical instrument includes an interference filter having at least one dielectric layer and at least one metallic layer arranged one above another. At least one of the at least one metallic layer and the at least one dielectric layer is adapted to be structurally altered by action of a corrosive environment on the surface coating such that the surface coating is convertible from a first state to a second state. In the first state, the surface coating has a first spectral reflectivity. In the second state, the surface coating has a second spectral reflectivity that is different from the first spectral reflectivity.