Abstract

Several studies have demonstrated the fact that suprathreshold contrast perception for sine wave gratings is relatively independent of the number of stimulus cycles. However, only two studies have investigated perceived contrast for patterns as small as one or two cycles and these produced conflicting results. One study found a decrease in the apparent contrast of suprathreshold sine wave gratings for gratings less than two cycles in width. The other study found no change in apparent contrast as the number of cycles was reduced below two. The type of model often proposed for contrast perception, based on independent receptive field mechanisms with antagonistic surrounds, would predict a reduction in perceived contrast as the number of stimulus cycles approaches one. Thus, the difference in these results has important implications for the structure of visual models.

© 1986 Optical Society of America