Refractive corrector incorporating a continuous central phase zone and peripheral phase discontinuities

A method for modifying a refractive property of ocular tissue in an eye, comprising:

• forming at least one optically-modified layer in at least one of the corneal stroma and the crystalline lens ocular tissue in an eye by scanning light pulses from a laser focused in the corneal stroma or crystalline lens ocular tissue along regions of the corneal stroma or crystalline lens ocular tissue to cause changes in the refractive index within the ocular tissue to form a modified corneal stroma or crystalline lens;
• wherein the modified corneal stroma or crystalline lens comprises (a) a central zone having a continuous wavefront cross-section phase profile, having a wavefront maximum height of greater than 1 design wavelength λ in the area of the central zone, and (b) a peripheral region comprising multiple segments and having a discontinuous wavefront cross-section phase profile having phase shifts between segments that are equal to the design wavelength or multiples of the design wavelength, wherein the phase shifts in the peripheral region are less than or equal to the wavefront maximum height in the central zone;
• and wherein the at least one optically-modified layer forms at least part of at least one of the central zone or the peripheral region.