An OCT image with a rubber plate used for the measurement of the cross-sectional area.

<p>The area between the sample surface and the surface of the rubber plate behind the sclera, which is defined by line interpolation from the exposed surface of the rubber plate, was defined as the cross-sectional area.</p

An example of stress-strain curve.

<p>The region from 0% to 6.5% strain was fitted by an analytic curve to obtain a tangent modulus.</p

Plots of elastic parameters of structural stiffness (A) and tangent modulus (B) against inherent birefringence.

<p>Plots of elastic parameters of structural stiffness (A) and tangent modulus (B) against inherent birefringence.</p

Birefringence alteration plotted against internet birefringence.

<p>Circles and rectangles indicate meridional and equatorial strain, respectively. The dashed and solid lines respectively represent regression curves of meridional and equatorial strains obtained by linear regression analysis which explains the birefringence alteration as a linear function of inherent birefringence and strain direction.</p

The time chart of strain applied during the measurement.

<p>Prestress of 0.04 N was applied to remove slack of the sample. Ten-cycle preconditioning was applied by loading and unloading from 0–6.5 % strain with a speed of 1.8 mm/min. After 10 s of preconditioning, the sample was extended from 0–6.5 % strain with the same speed.</p

Second-harmonic-generation microscopy images of porcine sclera.

<p>The images were taken by a custom-made second-harmonic-generation microscope with an excitation wavelength of 800 nm and excitation pulse duration of 100 fs. The scale bars indicate 100 µm times 100 µm.</p

The birefringence alteration by meridional and equatorial strain.

<p>The birefringence alteration by meridional and equatorial strain.</p

Porcine sclera dissected by scalpel blades.

<p>A strip of sclera was dissected at the temporal region 5 mm apart from ONH, resulting in a rectangular shape with a width of 4 mm and a length of approximately 15 mm.</p

The experimental system for birefringence and elasticity measurements.

<p>The experimental system for birefringence and elasticity measurements.</p

Porcine sclera dissected by scalpel blades.

<p>Strips in the lower and upper sides of the figure are peripapillary sclera and sclera near the limbus, respectively. The four strips of sclera between them were used for the measurement.</p