Lecture 7

Physics of Vision, part 1

 Science of vision
• Light is invisible, but stimulates the vision of other objects

• Ancient scientists - Optics – science of vision

• Claudius-Galen (130-200 AD)– described the anatomy of human eye for the
first time, described light as a part of vision – “light of eye”
• Later Arabian scientist Ibn Alhayth Alhazen (11th century AD) –
“Light is an entity emitted by luminous objects”

• Modern view: Light is a flow of energy of dual nature - both electromagnetic

waves and a stream of particles (photons)
• The name “Light” is used for visible spectrum of electromagnetic radiation

• Physics of vision :
• 1. light is emitted by objects (nature of light)
• 2. light strikes our eyes, vision is excited (interaction of light with matter and
physiology of eye)
 Wave nature of light
• Light is a wave:
• Bends around obstacles– diffraction
• Combines with like waves to reinforce or weaken each other – interference
• Characterized by speed, wavelength and frequency :

In vacuum: c  
• Bending when entering to another medium - refraction

eye is sensitive to both

wavelength and intensity
•Visible light: 400-750 nm
Intensity - amount of energy per
unit area per unit time
 Polarization

• Light is electromagnetic waves – varying electric and magnetic

components, E and B
E
linear polarized light
B

• but natural light is generally non-polarized, all planes of propagation being

equally probable.
 Polarization
• Light is considered linearly polarized – when E oscillates in one plane in space
• If light is composed of two plane waves of equal amplitude by differing in phase by
90°, then the light is said to be circularly polarized.

Eye is sensitive to intensity, wavelength, polarization,

Right and left circularly polarized light
 Particle nature of light
• Light is a wave – continuous flow of energy,
• Light is a stream of particles –discrete bundles of energy – photons

• Planck proposed that the radiant energy could exist only in discrete quanta
which are proportional to the frequency
• each photon has energy E:
hc
E  h 

• h – Planck’s constant, h = 6.63 x 10-34 Joule·sec

• The emission and adsorption of light by atoms and molecules occur by

individual photons.

• Photoreceptive cells in the eye– are excited by a photon with appropriate E,

a chain of molecular reactions transmits signal to brain
• Photoreceptive cell is sensitive to a single photon
 Light intensity

• Intensity =Power Per Unit Solid

Angle

• I intensity = the power (flux) per unit

solid angle (sometimes called
luminous pointance)

• For visible light, Light Intensity is

expressed in
• lumens per steradian = candela.

• If the intensity of a source is the

same in all directions, the source is
isotropic.
 Geometrical optics. Refraction

Refraction is the bending of a wave when it enters a medium where it's

speed is different.

The amount of bending depends on the refractive index n of the medium

(in respect to vacuum)

c
n
c-speed in vacuum

vm v-speed in medium
 Geometrical optics. Refraction

Snell’s law – lights enters from one

medium to another:

Refractive indices in medium

1 and 2
 Geometrical optics. Refraction

c
n
Speed in vacuum

c 
vm n 
vm m
Speed in medium

c   frequency

refraction of light depends

on light wavelength
 Human eye. Gradient – index lens.
In human eye lights travels through 4 media: cornea,
aqueous humor, eye lens, vitreous humor. Refractive indices
are similar in these parts, most bending at the air – cornea

Refractive index of eye-lens is not

uniform in the eye lens:

equator
1.38

1.386 In center1.41 1.386

Gradient-index lens (GRIN) lens, the average is taken as n=1.4

 Spherical aberration
• In an ideal optical system, all rays of light from a point in the object plane would
converge to the same point in the image plane, forming a clear image. The influences
which cause different rays to converge to different points are called aberrations.
• For lenses made with spherical surfaces, rays which are at different distances from the
optical axis fail to converge to the same point – spherical aberration.

• GRIN lens of the eye corrects spherical aberration

• Pupil is reduced at bright light - reduces the spherical aberration
• In the dark the pupil is large and does not reduce spherical aberration as well as at
bright light
 Chromatic aberration

• A refractive index of medium depends on wavelength, because light of different

wavelengths travels with different speeds.
• Refractive index decreases with increase in wavelength – Cauchy’s relation:

B C
n  A   ... A, B, C – empirically determined

2 2
constants for the medium

• Chromatic aberration is caused by different amount of bending for different colors.

Because of this the lens will not focus different colors in exactly the same place :
 Refractive power, surfaces
When light comes from one medium (refractive index n1) to another
medium (refractive index n2) through the curved surface:

light
n2

R Center of curvature
object n1

image
o i
n1 n2 n2  n1
  R- radius of curvature of a surface
o i R
n2  n1 Refractive power P is positive for convex,
P negative for concave
R the physical units for refractive power is
1/meter called dioptres.
 Refractive power, lens
•Lens- is two surfaces enclosed a medium different from outside

Focal length f is a distance over which initially

collimated rays are brought by a lens to a focus.
Refractive power P is the degree to which a surface
or lens converges or diverges light
P is positive for convex, negative for concave

P=1/f, where f is a focal length of the lens,

 Refractive power of eye
n=1
• 4 refracting surfaces in human eye, 4 n=1.37
refractive powers: n=1.33
• Cornea 2 surfaces – convex, R=7.8 n=1.4

n2  n1
• Power of air-cornea: P n=1.33
R
1.37  1 1
P1  3
 47 m  47 Dioptres
7.8 10
• n cornea 1.37, n air =1 Power of eye lens surfaces:
R1 10 mm (convex), R2 -6mm (concave)
n lens (av) =1.4, n vitr humor =1.33
• Power of cornea-aqueous humor:
• n aq humor =1.33
1.40  1.33
P3  3
 7 D
1.33  1.37 10 10
P2   5D
7.8 10 3 1.33  1.40
P4  3
 11D
6  10
• Lens- is two surfaces enclosed a medium different from outside
• Lens has 2 Radii of curvature
Gullstrand’s equation

d
P  P1  P2  P1 P2 If lens is
thin d=0 P  P1  P2
n
d – distance between two surfaces, n-refractive index of lens, P1 and P2 power of
two surfaces
The power of eye lens (thin lens approximation):

Peyelense  P3  P4  18D

• The power of cornea (thin lens approximation) The power of eye total:

Pc  P1  P2  47  5  42D 18+42=60D
 Reduced eye model
• The model of eye where all refractive surfaces are replaced by one lens of
total power 60D is called reduced eye model

• The equivalent lens is assumed to be in air, n=1.34

• When eye is focused at far point o   the distance i of image from

the lens = f (focal length)

1.34 1.34
i f   m  22.5mm
Plens 60
P=n/f, f=n/P

• Optical center of the lens of reduced eye is 22.5mm away from retina
 Accomodation
Accomodation is ability of eye to adjust
its refractive power by automatic change
of curvature of the eye-lens
Normal P=60D,
Max P =72 D due to accomodation

The eye lens is held by strong fibers attached to

ciliary muscles, when relaxed the eye-lens flattens –
far point, tense – lens becomes more spherical –
The reduced model of eye assumes increases the power – focus at near point ( min
distance eye can see clearly 8 cm from eye)
one refractive surface of R=5.7 mm, n inside 1.34,
focal length inside the eye 22.5 mm, Review how eye works, accommodation:
lens power 60D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EF5CnemVJQ
M&feature=related
 Refractive errors
normal eye in relaxed condition - the image of a distant object is focused
on retina

•Myopic eye, light is focused in front

of the retina (the focal length is too
short).

myopic eye

•hyperopic eye, light is focused

behind the retina (focal length is too
long).

hyperopic eye
 example
• Calculate accommodation of eye in Dioptres, if this accomodation
corresponds to the change in radius of curvature in eye lens (-) 0.6 mm,
(radius is reduced) use reduced eye model.

• The reduced model of eye assumes

• one refractive surface of R=5.7 mm,
• n2 inside =1.34, n1 outside =1 (we consider that it does not change)
• lens power 60D
n2  n1
P
R
P1  60 D  60m 1
P1 R2 5.1
   0.9
P2 R1 5.7
Accomodation =7D
P2  P1 / 0.9  60 / 0.9  67 D
 Key points:
• Nature of light • Understand examples
• Intensity, diffraction, of calculations
refraction, polarization
• Eye structure
• Refractive power of
the eye lens
• Accommodation