The seminar will focus on a new way of perceiving near-infrared light based on two-photon absorption occurring in photoreceptor pigments. The phenomenon enables the perception of short-pulse laser beams with wavelengths of 850-1200 nm focused on the retina; the color of these beams corresponds to approximately half of their wavelength. The nonlinear nature of the interaction of light with photoreceptors implies certain features that distinguish two-photon vision from normal vision: quadratic dependence of stimulus brightness on light intensity and retinal stimulation limited to the area of the beam focus. These features make two-photon vision useful in functional vision research, both at the basic research level and in ophthalmic diagnostics
About the speaker
Nicolaus Copernicus University, currently post-doc researcher at Physical Optics and Biophotonics Group, ICTER
