Subpixel Rendering
Every pixel on a standard monitor consists of three components: a red, a
green and a blue. The brightness of each of these sub-pixels is controlled
independently, and because of their small size, our eyes blend the three
into one solid-colored pixel.
Typical anti-aliasing sets even values for each of these subpixels, resulting in
full grayscale pixels. Subpixel rendering exploits the individuality of each
single-colored component and uses it to increase the perceived resolution
of the monitor.
This allows a pixel to take on visual weight from neighboring pixels,
thereby allowing type to be smoothed in smaller increments. Rendering the
type in this manner can produce subtle color shifts visible along the edges
of glyphs.