Background size and saturation of the rod system

Abstract

To determine the effect of background size on saturation of the human rod system, we measured threshold-vs-intensity (tvi) functions for a 24′-diameter, middle-wavelength test stimulus against long-wavelength background fields that were either 2 or 8 in diameter. When thresholds were measured against a series of background intensities presented during a single experimental session (a standard tvi procedure), rod increment thresholds were higher against the smaller background and eventually disappeared above cone increment thresholds at moderate background intensities. This result suggests that background diameter does influence rod system saturation. However, when adaptation to the smaller background was limited to a 5 min exposure to a single background intensity per experimental session, then thresholds against that background were rod- rather than cone-mediated and were comparable to rod thresholds against an 8 background. Therefore, under these stimulus conditions, background size apparently does not influence rod system saturation unless adaptation to the smaller background is prolonged. Based on previous studies, we suggest that the rod-desensitizing effect of small backgrounds under conditions of prolonged adaptation is due to a post-retinal mechanism.