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Light Transmission through the Ocular Media and Macular Pigment and its Significance for Psychophysical Investigation

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Visual Psychophysics

Part of the book series: Handbook of Sensory Physiology ((1536,volume 7 / 4))

Abstract

The light which is detected by photochemical absorption in the receptoral pigments must firstly traverse the ocular media and the retina. The refractive powers of the ocular media enable the eye to form a retinal image, but in addition, these media have significant attenuating properties. Attenuation of the incident light beam on its passage through the eye arises from two sources, namely, absorption and scatter. Both forms of light loss may be wavelength dependent, and may therefore influence the spectral composition of “white” light absorbed by the photopigments. Scattering of light from an incident beam also degrades the visual image (see Westheimer, chapter 7, this volume).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. London, Great Britain

    K. H. Ruddock

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  1. K. H. Ruddock
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  1. Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, USA

    Dorothea Jameson  & Leo M. Hurvich  & 

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Ruddock, K.H. (1972). Light Transmission through the Ocular Media and Macular Pigment and its Significance for Psychophysical Investigation. In: Jameson, D., Hurvich, L.M. (eds) Visual Psychophysics. Handbook of Sensory Physiology, vol 7 / 4. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-88658-4_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-88658-4_17

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-88660-7

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