Dual wavefront sensing channel monocular adaptive optics system for accommodation studies

Adaptive optics visual simulators: a review of recent optical designs and applications [Invited]

In their pioneering work demonstrating measurement and full correction of the eye's optical aberrations, Liang, Williams and Miller, [JOSA A14, 2884 (1997)10.1364/JOSAA.14.002884] showed improvement in visual performance using adaptive optics (AO). Since then, AO visual simulators have been developed to explore the spatial limits to human vision and as platforms to test non-invasively optical corrections for presbyopia, myopia, or corneal irregularities. These applications have allowed new psychophysics bypassing the optics of the eye, ranging from studying the impact of the interactions of monochromatic and chromatic aberrations on vision to neural adaptation. Other applications address new paradigms of lens designs and corrections of ocular errors. The current paper describes a series of AO visual simulators developed in laboratories around the world, key applications, and current trends and challenges. As the field moves into its second quarter century, new available technologies and a solid reception by the clinical community promise a vigorous and expanding use of AO simulation in years to come.

Drifts in real-time partial wavefront correction and how to avoid them

In visual experiments that require real-time partial correction of wavefront aberrations, small errors occur that accumulate over time and lead to drifts in Zernike coefficients of the uncorrected aberrations. A simple algorithm that does not require the inclusion of an additional optical path to obtain independent measurements of the eye's aberrations is described here, and its effectiveness in preventing these drifts is demonstrated.

Vision science and adaptive optics, the state of the field

Adaptive optics is a relatively new field, yet it is spreading rapidly and allows new questions to be asked about how the visual system is organized. The editors of this feature issue have posed a series of question to scientists involved in using adaptive optics in vision science. The questions are focused on three main areas. In the first we investigate the use of adaptive optics for psychophysical measurements of visual system function and for improving the optics of the eye. In the second, we look at the applications and impact of adaptive optics on retinal imaging and its promise for basic and applied research. In the third, we explore how adaptive optics is being used to improve our understanding of the neurophysiology of the visual system.

Effect of correction of aberration dynamics on chaos in human ocular accommodation

We used adaptive optics to determine the effect of monochromatic aberration dynamics on the level of chaos in the accommodation control system. Four participants viewed a stationary target while the dynamics of their aberrations were either left uncorrected, defocus was corrected, or all aberrations except defocus were corrected. Chaos theory analysis was used to discern changes in the accommodative microfluctuations. We found a statistically significant reduction in the chaotic nature of the accommodation microfluctuations during correction of defocus, but not when all aberrations except defocus were corrected. The Lyapunov exponent decreased from 0.71 ± 0.07 D/s (baseline) to 0.55 ± 0.03 D/s (correction of defocus fluctuations). As the reduction of chaos in physiological signals is indicative of stress to the system, the results indicate that for the participants included in this study, fluctuations in defocus have a more profound effect than those of the other aberrations. There were no changes in the power spectrum between experimental conditions. Hence chaos theory analysis is a more subtle marker of changes in the accommodation control system and will be of value in the study of myopia onset and progression.

Processing blur of conflicting stimuli during the latency and onset of accommodation

The accommodative response (AR) to changes in dioptric accommodative stimulus (AS) during the latency period and onset of accommodation was investigated. Participants monocularly observed one period of a square wave in AS, with a 2-D baseline and mean, and amplitude 1 D or 2 D; the period of the square wave ranged from 0.10 s to 1.00 s; both increases and decreases were used for the first step in AS. At periods of 0.30s and longer, accommodation was found to respond to both levels of the stimulus. Rapid retinal monitoring appeared to be taking place for such stimuli. The amplitudes of peaks in AR did not usually depend on whether a particular level of AS occurred first or second, but for 8/40 conditions, a significant difference was found, with a stronger response when the level of AS occurred second. Null or incorrect responses were also observed in many trials, possibly linked with the natural microfluctuations of accommodation. Minimum response times to the changes in AS were observed, which increased with decreasing period of the AS. The time interval between peaks in the AR decreased with decreasing period of the AS. The findings were consistent with a parallel processing model previously proposed for saccades, where input from a later change in stimulus may enter an element of the control system when that element has finished processing an earlier change. More than one change in stimulus may therefore be passing through the multi-element control system at a time.

Binocular visual performance and summation after correcting higher order aberrations

Although the ocular higher order aberrations degrade the retinal image substantially, most studies have investigated their effect on vision only under monocular conditions. Here, we have investigated the impact of binocular higher order aberration correction on visual performance and binocular summation by constructing a binocular adaptive optics (AO) vision simulator. Binocular monochromatic aberration correction using AO improved visual acuity and contrast sensitivity significantly. The improvement however, differed from that achieved under monocular viewing. At high spatial frequency (24 c/deg), the monocular benefit in contrast sensitivity was significantly larger than the benefit achieved binocularly. In addition, binocular summation for higher spatial frequencies was the largest in the presence of subject's native higher order aberrations and was reduced when these aberrations were corrected. This study thus demonstrates the vast potential of binocular AO vision testing in understanding the impact of ocular optics on habitual binocular vision.

Multifractal nature of ocular aberration dynamics of the human eye

Ocular monochromatic aberrations display dynamic behavior even when the eye is fixating on a stationary stimulus. The fluctuations are commonly characterized in the frequency domain using the power spectrum obtained via the Fourier transform. In this paper we used a wavelet-based multifractal analytical approach to provide a more in depth analysis of the nature of the aberration fluctuations. The aberrations of five subjects were measured at 21 Hz using an open-view Shack-Hartmann sensor. We show that the aberration dynamics are multifractal. The most frequently occurring Hölder exponent for the rms wavefront error, averaged across the five subjects, was 0.31 ± 0.10. This suggests that the time course of the aberration fluctuations is antipersistant. Future applications of multifractal analysis are discussed.

Effect of temporal location of correction of monochromatic aberrations on the dynamic accommodation response

Dynamic correction of monochromatic aberrations of the eye is known to affect the accommodation response to a step change in stimulus vergence. We used an adaptive optics system to determine how the temporal location of the correction affects the response. The system consists of a Shack-Hartmann sensor sampling at 20 Hz and a 37-actuator piezoelectric deformable mirror. An extra sensing channel allows for an independent measure of the accommodation level of the eye. The accommodation response of four subjects was measured during a +/- 0.5 D step change in stimulus vergence whilst aberrations were corrected at various time locations. We found that continued correction of aberrations after the step change decreased the gain for disaccommodation, but increased the gain for accommodation. These results could be explained based on the initial lag of accommodation to the stimulus and changes in the level of aberrations before and after the stimulus step change. Future considerations for investigations of the effect of monochromatic aberrations on the dynamic accommodation response are discussed.