The neon color effect in the ehrenstein pattern: Dependence on wavelength and illuminance

Abstract

The neon color effect can be described as an illusory spread of color surrounding colored lines embedded in certain line gaps. The effect is seen in the Ehrenstein pattern if colored crosses are added to the central gaps so as to connect the inner tips of the pattern. Experiments were conducted to explore the dependence of this neon color effect on the wavelength and retinal illuminance of the inducing lines. The following results were obtained: (1) neon color effects are strong when the wavelength of the crosses is in the short- (< 480 nm) or long-wave part of the spectrum (> 620 nm) and the wavelength of the Ehrenstein pattern is in the middle-wave part (500–580 nm). Effects are weak or absent when the crosses and the pattern have similar wavelengths. (2) The neon color effect is just detectable when the ratio between the retinal illuminances of the Ehrenstein pattern and the crosses ranges from 0.1 to 0.8. The neon color effect is maximal at illuminance ratios ranging from 0.8 to 8. (3) The strength of the neon color effect is independent of the illuminance level of the crosses if the illuminance ratio to the Ehrenstein pattern is maintained.