Thomas Young's contributions to geometrical optics

Abstract

In addition to his work on physical optics, Thomas Young (1773-1829) made several contributions to geometrical optics, most of which received little recognition in his time or since. We describe and assess some of these contributions: Young's construction (the basis for much of his geometric work), paraxial refraction equations, oblique astigmatism and field curvature, and gradient-index optics.

Aberrations and accommodation

“…In the case of fourth‐order SA, there is agreement between numerous studies about its well‐defined trend, becoming less positive (or more negative) with increasing accommodation . As mentioned earlier, this was originally discovered by Young, although he did not give it the name of SA. After Young, many others reported this change, which has been proven to be generated because of the hyperbolic shape of the surfaces of the crystalline lens .…”

“…Currently, it is well known that there are no significant changes in corneal power during accommodation, and only small changes have been observed in the sclera . In addition to this, Young realised that the refractive power in the periphery of his pupil was greater than in the centre, and when he accommodated, the refractive power distribution was opposite . This was the first observation that proved that the spherical aberration (SA) of the eye changed its sign with accommodation.…”

“…Accommodation can be thought of as a natural adaptive optics mechanism to improve the retinal image quality of objects placed at different distances. It was Thomas Young who demonstrated at the beginning of the 19th century that the change in refractive power of the eye is due to the crystalline lens . Currently, it is well known that there are no significant changes in corneal power during accommodation, and only small changes have been observed in the sclera .…”

“…It was Thomas Young who demonstrated at the beginning of the 19th century that the change in refractive power of the eye is due to the crystalline lens. 1,2 Currently, it is well known that there are no significant changes in corneal power during accommodation, 3,4 and only small changes have been observed in the sclera. 5 In addition to this, Young realised that the refractive power in the periphery of his pupil was greater than in the centre, and when he accommodated, the refractive power distribution was opposite.…”

Is history bunk?

“…The lead article in this issue of Clinical and Experimental Optometry is a paper on Thomas Young's contributions to geometrical optics by David Atchison and Neil Charman 1 . It examines Young's work on this subject in a paper he published in 1801 and in his book, A Course of Lectures on Natural Philosophy and the Mechanical Arts , published in 1807.…”