Calculations on the Optical Modulation Transfer Function of the Human Eye for White Light

Abstract

Modulation transfer functions of the dioptrics of the human eye for white (equal energy distribution) light were calculated for different pupil sizes from experimental data on the aberrations. The largest aberration is the chromatic difference of focus. Since this aberration is well known quantitatively and is subject to small individual differences only, the calculated modulation transfer functions can be considered as representative for human eyes in general. The present calculations, the fundus reflection measurements of the line-spread function by Campbell and Gubisch [1], and the measurements of retinal scattering by Ohzu and Enoch [2] confirm each other. Modulation transfer functions were also calculated for just noticeable focusing errors, and may be informative on the tolerance limit to visual image quality. The calculations have been extended to the special conditions of vision at low luminances.