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Effect of ocular transverse chromatic aberration on detection acuity for peripheral vision
Frank Cheney1, Larry Thibos, Arthur Bradley
1School of Optometry, Indiana University, Bloomington, USA.
Purpose:
We examined the effect of transverse chromatic aberration (TCA) on detection acuity for white-light interference fringes seen in Maxwellian view at various orientations and locations in the visual field.
Methods:
A circular patch (3.5° diameter, 3.2 log Trolands) of nominally high-contrast fringes was produced on the retina by a commercial instrument (the Lotmar Visometer, Haag Streit) mounted on a gimbal for controlled positioning of the stimulus in the visual field from 0° to 35° eccentricity.
Results:
Detection acuity for white light fringes for all meridians and eccentricities ≥15° was maximum when fringes were oriented parallel to the visual meridian line. This meridional effect disappeared when a narrow-band filter was used to eliminate TCA. The meridional effect also disappeared when the interferometric stimulator was displaced laterally to align the instrument with the eye's local achromatic axis.
Conclusions:
Modelling confirmed that TCA is the major factor responsible for white-light meridional bias, with minor contribution arising from higher-order monochromatic aberrations and neural factors.
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