Differences in perceived chromatic aberration between emmetropic and myopic eyes using adaptive optics

Area of Science:

• Vision Science
• Ophthalmology
• Perception

Background:

• Polychromatic visual perception is complex, involving numerous entangled factors from external visual cues to internal ocular and neural processes.
• Understanding these factors is crucial for advancing visual science and addressing visual impairments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the perception of combined optical cues and its dependence on refractive error using an adaptive optics polychromatic visual simulator.
• To quantify Chromatic Difference of Focus (CDF) and Longitudinal Chromatic Aberration (LCA) under various conditions.

Main Methods:

• Employed an adaptive optics (AO) visual simulator to present polychromatic and monochromatic stimuli.
• Measured subjective best focus for different wavelengths, stimuli types, and with/without AO correction.
• Calculated CDF for Green-Blue and Green-Red wavelengths and estimated LCA using polynomial regression.

Main Results:

• Chromatic Difference of Focus (CDF) trends varied between G-Red and G-Blue regions, particularly with specific stimuli and AO correction.
• Myopic participants showed similar CDF values for G-Blue and G-Red, while emmetropic participants had greater CDF for G-Blue.
• Longitudinal Chromatic Aberration (LCA) did not vary with refractive error, and AO correction had no significant effect.

Conclusions:

• Refractive profile significantly influences the perception and processing of chromatic visual information.
• Findings suggest that individual refractive error plays a role in visual mechanisms underlying chromatic defocus perception.