Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 16, 2026

Single-cell Suction Recordings from Mouse Cone Photoreceptors
Published on: January 5, 2010
Effect of the S-cone mosaic and rods on red/green equilibria
J L Nerger1, V J Volbrecht, C J Ayde
1Department of Psychology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523-1876, USA.
Abstract:
The loci of unique blue and unique yellow were measured with and without a rod bleach for various test sizes in the fovea and at 1 and 8 deg nasal and superior retinal eccentricities. Test sizes and retinal positions were selected to systematically manipulate the absolute and relative numbers of S cones underlying the test stimuli. The results revealed the following: (1) The locus of unique blue shifted to longer wavelengths as the absolute number of S cones underlying the test stimulus increased, suggesting that the S-cone neural weighting factor of the red/green (R/G) opponent model is linked to the absolute number of S cones. (2) In general, the locus of unique yellow remained invariant, although changes were observed in the superior retina. This finding indicates that either the L-to-M-cone ratio may not be invariant across all retinal quadrants or that this ratio may not determine the locus of unique yellow. (3) Rod signals affected the locus of the unique hues, especially at small test sizes, demonstrating an influence of rods on the R/G opponent mechanism.
Related Concept Videos
The Retina
Colors and Magnetism
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human eye.
Properties of Enantiomers and Optical Activity
Anatomy of the Eyeball
Photoreceptors and Visual Pathways
Color Vision

