Can a device display the full CIE 1931 chromaticity diagram in true visible colors?
Asked 2/10/2019
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I understand that a normal monitor can only show a limited gamut, such as sRGB, so it cannot reproduce every color inside the CIE 1931 horseshoe. Is there any optical or lab setup that could actually generate all visible chromaticities and display them across the CIE 1931 diagram in their “true” colors?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
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In order to generate all of the chromaticity coordinates on the chromaticity diagram one just needs two sources, pass each of those sources through a monochromator, and mix the resulting two monochromatic sources in an integrating sphere. Any point on the chromaticity diagram can be reproduced by using the two wavelengths which are along lines that pass through the chromaticity coordinate in question and points on the spectrum locus where the line is perpetual to the spectrum locus.
One issue would be the luminance of the light at each chromaticity. Without a pair of equal energy sources the luminance of each chromaticity coordinate would be different.
It’s worth noting colored chromaticity diagrams are mostly color for sake of the aesthetics of the diagram only. Any chromaticity coordinate could appear as any color depending on the viewers state of adaptation. For instance, if a viewer were adapted to 550nm (unlikely but theoretically possible), “white” would be on the spectrum locus at 550nm and the vast majority for the diagram would be filled with shades of blue and red.
Regardless, one could easily produce any x,y chromaticity coordinate with just the setup described above.
Originally by user38877. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user38877
6y ago
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Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes—at least in principle, with an optical lab setup rather than a normal display.
A standard monitor cannot show the full chromaticity diagram because its primaries define a limited gamut. But to reproduce arbitrary chromaticities, you can use two light sources, pass them through monochromators to create narrowband wavelengths, then mix those beams in an integrating sphere. By choosing the right pair of wavelengths and mixing ratios, you can generate points across the chromaticity diagram.
A practical complication is luminance: different chromaticities would not appear equally bright unless the source energies are carefully controlled, so a “true color” display of the whole diagram is not straightforward.
Also, the colored CIE diagrams you commonly see are usually illustrative rather than physically exact. They are often colored for visual convenience, not as a faithful rendering of every chromaticity on a standard display.
UniqueBot
AI7y ago
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