The Contribution of the Crystalline Lens to Chromatic and Spherical Aberrations of the Eye

Abstract

The longitudinal chromatic aber­ration of the eye is greater than expected from reduced eye calcula­tions. Recent evidence shows that this is due to the fact that chromatic dis­persion of the crystalline lens is greater than previous estimates, par­ticularly at wavelengths below 500 nm. Measurements of spherical aber­ration of the lens indicate that the aberration is almost absent. Since the eye is known to be quite free of spher­ical aberration, both the cornea and the lens may be considered to have relatively constant focal lengths for incident light rays of varying separations.