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+# background-material Explainer
+
+## Problem
+
+Installed web apps cannot use OS-native translucent/material window frames, and HTML elements cannot request native material backplates.
+
+## Goals
+
+- Allow installed web apps to opt into material-backed window frames.
+- Provide a CSS property for material-backed page and element surfaces.
+- Use abstract material names, not OS-specific names.
+- Preserve fallback behavior on platforms that do not support real materials.
+
+## Non-goals
+
+- Defining spatial layout.
+- Exposing sampled environment data to script.
+- Styling browser chrome.
+- Standardizing vendor material names.
+
+## Proposal
+
+Manifest:
+
+```json
+{
+  "display": "standalone",
+  "background_material": "regular"
+}
+````
+
+CSS:
+
+```css
+:root {
+  background-color: transparent;
+  background-material: regular;
+}
+
+.panel {
+  background-material: regular;
+  border-radius: 12px;
+}
+```
+
+Initial values:
+
+```css
+none | transparent | thin | regular | thick
+```
+
+## Why manifest + CSS?
+
+The manifest opt-in gates top-level window transparency because it affects OS-level app chrome and has spoofing risk.
+
+CSS controls the actual visual treatment after the app has opted in.
+
+## Relationship to backdrop-filter
+
+[`backdrop-filter`](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/backdrop-filter) samples DOM content behind an element.
+
+`background-material` samples the OS/environment surface behind the web surface where the UA supports that composition.
+
+For normal opaque browser tabs, authors should generally use [`backdrop-filter`](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/backdrop-filter).
+
+## Prior work
+
+* [Microsoft Edge Materials in Web Applications explainer](https://github.com/MicrosoftEdge/MSEdgeExplainers/blob/main/Materials/explainer.md)
+* [WebSpatial `background-material` API](https://webspatial.dev/docs/api/react-sdk/css-api/background-material)
+* [CSS Spatial Layout Module Level 1 explainer](https://webkit.github.io/explainers/css-spatial/Overview.html)
+* [Web App Manifest](https://www.w3.org/TR/appmanifest/)
+* [WICG](https://wicg.io/)
+
+## Open questions
+
+* Final value vocabulary.
+* Whether per-element rendering is required or optional.
+* Fallback behavior when real materials are unavailable.
+* Interaction with [`prefers-reduced-transparency`](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/prefers-reduced-transparency).
+* Contrast/accessibility guidance.
+* Feature detection using [`@supports`](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@supports) and/or a media feature.
+