Groundbreaking laser technique unlocks unprecedented blue-green hue, challenging our understanding of visual experience
Researchers at UC Berkeley claim to have created “olo,” an intensely saturated blue-green shade unlike any naturally occurring colour.
Using a groundbreaking laser technique called Oz, the team selectively stimulated middle-wavelength (M) cone cells in the retina, bypassing normal visual processing.
Test subjects described olo as a “blue-green of unprecedented saturation” that defied matching with existing pigments.
Published in Science Advances, the study leverages adaptive optics—technology borrowed from astronomy—to target individual photoreceptors.
Unlike traditional displays that mix red, green, and blue light, this method uses spatial metamerism to create hyper-saturated hues.
While some experts note single-cone stimulation isn’t new, the ability to generate entire images with this technique marks a leap forward.
Debate continues over whether olo qualifies as a truly novel colour or an extreme variant of blue-green. But one thing’s certain: it challenges how we define visual experience.
