olography dates from1947, when British/Hungarian scientistDennis Gabor developed the theory of holography while working to improvethe resolution of an electron microscope. Gabor, who characterized hiswork as "an experiment in serendipity" that was "begun too soon," coined the term hologram from theGreek words holos, meaning "whole," and gramma, meaning "message." (seeGabor's autobiography)
Gabor's first paper on holography evoked immediate response from scientists worldwide. Among those who made important contributions to the development of the technique were G.L. Rogers, A.B. Baez, H. El-Sum, P. Kirkpatrick and M.E. Haine. In these early years,the mercury arc lamp was the most coherent light source available for making holograms. Because of the low coherency of this light, it was not possible to produce holograms of any depth, thus restricting research. Despite equipment limitations, these researchers identified many of the properties of holography and further elaborated on Gabor's theory. Most important, they extended their understanding of the process and its potential toanother generation of scientists.
Gabor's holography was limited to film transparencies using a mercury arc lamp as the light source. His holograms contained distortions and an extraneous twin image. Further development in the field was stymied during the next decade because light sources available at the time were not truly "coherent" (monochromatic or one-color, from a single point, and of a single wavelength).
This barrier was overcome in1960 with the invention of the laser,whose pure, intense light was ideal for making holograms. For the next ten years, holography techniques and applications mushroomed.
In1962 Emmett Leith and Juris Upatnieks of the University ofMichigan recognized from their work in side-reading radar that holographycould be used as a 3-D visual medium. In1962 they read Gabor'spaper and "simply out of curiosity" decided to duplicate Gabor's techniqueusing the laser and an "off-axis" technique borrowed from their work inthe development of side-reading radar. The result was the first laser transmission hologram of 3-D objects (a toy train and bird). These transmission holograms produced images with clarity and realistic depth but required laser light to view the holographic image.
Their pioneering work led to standardization of the equipment used tomake holograms. Today, thousands of laboratories and studios possess thenecessary equipment: a continuous wave laser, optical devices (lens, mirrorsand beam splitters) for directing laser light, a film holder and an isolationtable on which exposures are made. Stability is absolutely essential becausemovement as small as a quarter wave- length of light during exposures ofa few minutes or even seconds can completely spoil a hologram. The basicoff-axis technique that Leith and Upatnieks developed is still the stapleof holographic methodology.
Also in1962 Dr. Yuri N. Denisyuk of the U.S.S.R. combined holographywith 1908 Nobel Laureate Gabriel Lippmann's work in natural color photography. Denisyuk's approach produced a white-light reflection hologram which, for the first time, could be viewed in light from an ordinary incandescent light bulb.
Once Denisyuk's work became known in the US, three teams of workers set out to take the off-axis recording technique used in laser transmission holography and apply it to reflection holography. These researchers were: E. Leith, J. Upatnieks, A. Kozma, J. Marks and N. Massey (University of Michigan); G. Stroke, A. Labeyrie (Universityof Michigan) with K. Pennington and L. Lin (Bell Labs); and C. Schwartz and N. Hartmann (Batelle Memorial Institute). By the Fall of 1965, each group had successfully recorded off-axis reflection holograms within months of each other.The U.S. patent for the process was issued to Hartmann, and marked a further advance for holography as a display medium.
In1960 the pulsed-ruby laser was developed by Dr. T.H. Maimamof the Hughes Aircraft Corporation. This laser system (unlike the continuouswave laser normally used in holography) emits a very powerful burst oflight that lasts only a few nanoseconds (a billionth of a second). It effectivelyfreezes movement and makes it possible to produce holograms of high-speedevents, such as a bullet in flight, and of living subjects, paving the way for a specialized applicationof holography: pulsed holographic portraiture.
In1965 Robert Powell and Karl Stetson published the first paper on holographic interferometry. With this technique, small distortions between two holographic exposures of the same object -- one at rest and the other under stress -- are displayed as contours on the image. Holographic interferograms are useful in non-destructive testing of materials, fluid flow analysis andquality control.
Shankoff and Pennington developed the use of a dichromated gelatin as a holographic recordingmedium in1967. This made it possible to record a hologram on any clear, non-porous surface. From 1975 - 1984, Rich Rallison (International Dichromate Corp., Draper, UT) pioneered the use of dichromate holograms that were used as jewelry pendants and other premium items. This type of holography has been best used for high performance diffractive optics.
By the late 1960s, holography was still largely confined to the laboratory. Its firsttentative steps outside the scientific community took the form of magazine articles and public displays of holograms.Scientific American andNational Geographic carried feature stories.
The1967 World Book Encyclopedia Science Yearbook contained what is arguably the first mass-distributed hologram, a 4"x3" transmission view of chess pieces on a board. An article describing the production of the hologram and basic information about the history of holography accompanied it. A .05 watt He-Ne laser was used on a nine-ton granite table in a 30-second exposure to make the original from which all the copies were produced.
That same year, Editions Inc., an Ann Arbor (Michigan) gallery, operated by Lloyd Cross, Peter Van Riper and Jerry Pethick, began exhibiting holograms. It was the first public access to the medium and the only showcase for creative holography at this time.
Also in1967, Larry Siebert of the Conductron Corporation used a pulsed laser that he designed to make the first hologram of a person. The Conductron Corporation (later acquired by McDonnell Douglas Electronics Corporation) played an important role in the early days ofcommercial display holography. Their mass production and large plate capabilities serviced a tentative but potentially large market. Their gang-printed reflection holograms provided burgeoning marketing organizations with an exciting new promotional tool. Their large 18 x 24 inch plates made unusual trade show displays. The trend continued for several years until the recession in the early 1970s forced the company to close the pulsed laser facility.
A major advance in display holography occurred in1968when Dr. Stephen A. Benton invented white-light transmission holographywhile researching holographic television at Polaroid Research Laboratories.This type of hologram can be viewed in ordinary white light creating a"rainbow" image from the seven colors which make up white light. The depthand brilliance of the image and its rainbow spectrum soon attracted artistswho adapted this technique to their work and brought holography furtherinto public awareness.
Benton's invention is particularly significant because it made possiblemass production of holograms using an embossing technique. With this technique, developed by Michael Foster in 1974 and brought to commercial viability by Steve McGreww in 1979,holographic information is transferred from light sensitive glass plates to nickel embossing shims. The holographic images are "printed" by stamping the interference pattern onto plastic. The resultinghologram can be duplicated millions of times for a few cents apiece. Consequently,embossed holograms are now being used by the publishing, advertising, banking and security industries.
The first holographic art exhibition was held at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan in1968. The second took place at the Finch College gallery in New York in1970 and attracted national media attention.
During the same year, Lloyd Cross, a physicist, and Canadian sculptor Gerry Pethick developed a sand-table system for making holograms that did not require expensive laboratory optics andan isolation table for stability during exposures. Optical components were stabilized by using PVC plumbing pipes inserted into sand. This revolutionized the medium by making it accessible by artists.
Cross and his associates started the San Francisco School of Holography in1971, the firstsuch place for artists and scientists to learn the new medium.
Artists pioneering in the pulsed holography field during this time included Bruce Nauman, Carl Frederick Reutersward and Peter Nicholson. Nauman exhibited in the USA several self-portraits (Making Faces) using the pulsed laser at Conductron. These are the earliest known holograms by a recognized artist. Margaret Benyon (UK) became the first woman to use holography as an art medium
In1970 Reutersward exhibited pulsed works that were produced with Hans Bjelkhagen. Nick Phillips began producing large format (1 meter x 1 meter) pulsed transmission holograms at the University of Loughborough (UK).
In1971 Dr. Dennis Gabor was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery of holography in 1947.
In1972 Lloyd Cross developed the integral hologram by combiningwhite-light transmission holography with conventional cinematography toproduce moving 3-dimensional images. Sequential frames of 2-D motion-picture footage of a rotating subject are recorded on holographic film. When viewed, the composite images are synthesized by the human brain as a 3-D image.
Later, Cross founded The Multiplex Company that produced hundreds of images using his holographic stereogram technique. For more information about the beginning of The Multiplex Company, readThe Story of Multiplex, a rough draft by Lloyd Cross. The draft was provided by Ambjörn Naeve, who describes visits to Multiplex in 1976 atPoint Focus.
That same year, Benton modified his white light transmission technique to make black and white (achromatic) images.
Also in1972, Tung Jeong began to offer summer workshops for non-physicists in holography at Lake Forest College (Illinois). Intended to instruct educators on how to teach holography, the course also attracted student who saw in holography a new medium for expression.
Artist Salvador Dali gave holography further recognition by exhibiting holograms of his design at the Knoedler Gallery in New York.
Three years later, the International Center of Photography in New York City featuredHolography '75: The First Decade, produced by Jody Burns and Posy Jackson. It represented the work of artists and scientists from six countries.
From1975 - 1984, Rich Rallison (International Dichromate Corp., Draper, UT) pioneered the production of glass sandwich dichromate holograms that were used as jewelry pendants, key chains, paper weights, and other premium items.
While limited exhibition and productive work by scattered individuals proceeded slowly in the Western countries (mainly the United States, Germany, and Sweden), the Soviet Union rapidly pushed ahead research and production. It gave priority status toartists and scientists to work in elaborate state-financed laboratories. New developments were madein holographic movies and film emulsions.
In1976 Victor Komar and his colleagues at the All-Union Cinema and PhotographicResearch Institute (NIFKI), U.S.S.R., developed a prototype for a projected holographic movie. Images were recorded with a pulsed holographic camera at about 20 frames per second. The developed film was projected onto a holographic screen that focused the dimensional image out to several points in the audience. Two or three people could see a 47 second movie in full dimension without glasses. Kormar's plan to scale up the process for a 20 to 30 minute film for an audience of 200 - 300 people never materialized.
The Museum of Holography was founded in1976 in New York City as aninternational center for the understanding and advancement of this newmedium.
Lead by founder Rosemary H. Jackson, it served as the focalpoint for the art, science and technology, as well as the world'sforemost holography exhibitor. One year later, the museum opened itsPortrait Gallery of Famous New Yorkers (Hol-o-fame) with Martin E.Segal, NY Commission of Cultural Affairs noting, "We congratulate theMuseum. I can't think of anything that has happened in New York in thearts in the last four years that is more symbolic of this great citythan this innovative, new, imaginative and enduring art form." Also in1977, the Museum of Holography's traveling exhibition, "Through the Looking Glass" (based on its inaugural exhibition of the same name), opened in Toronto. For over 10 years, the traveling show visited art museums and galleries, children's museums and science & technology centers in the US and abroad.
In1983 MasterCard International, Inc. became the first to use hologram technology in bank card security.
National Geographic magazine was the first major publication to puta hologram on its cover. The March1984 issue carried nearly 11million holograms throughout the world.
In November1985 another cover hologram illustrated the featurearticle, "The Search for Early Man."
The December1988 National Geographic magazine featured the mostambitious hologram ever published in a large-circulation magazine. Theentire cover was holographic: a globe on the front cover, 3-D type on thespine, and an advertisement on the back. The front-cover hologram was madeusing a pulsed laser with an exposure of about seven-billionths of a second.
Production of the December 1988 National Geographic cover was a tripworthy of the Society itself:
Editor Wilbur Garrett decided in November 1987 to use a full-page hologram on the centennial issue. William W. Smith, director of engraving and printing, had to figure out how. At 28 cents a copy to produce (vs. 2 1/2 cents for a regular four- page cover). the hologram cover costs "had to be incorporated into our long-range budget," Smith explains. As thedesign evolved, it became a double laser image of the earth -- one wholeand one exploding -- to represent the fragile nature of our planet. PhotographerBruce Dale spent three months holographing more than 200 glass and threelead crystal globes shattered by bullets fired with an electronic triggeras the globe automatically dropped. A computer program calculated the speedsof the drop, the bullet and the impact. A green pulsed laser, at QuantelLab in Santa Clara, CA, captured the shattering globe with exposures ofbillionths of a second.
American Bank Note Holographics, in Elmsford, NY, embossed the holograms onto a plastic roll and transferred them to a 30-inch wide roll of special aluminum foil in Newburyport, MA. At Manville Forest Products in Monroe, LA the foil was laminated roll-to-roll to the magazine's regular 90# cover stock and covered with a scratch-resistant coating. The top coat also gave the cover its gold tint. On the hot- stamping press, the actual holographic image was limited to about 20 square inches due to the physical limitations of today's stamping presses.
Then, the covers, which were produced as four-up repeats on the roll,traveled on to Hawkinsville, GA, where the foil-laminated rolls were choppedinto sheets for printing. Peake Printers in Cheverly, MD and American Printers& Lithographers, Chicago, printed the inside covers. Krueger Ringier,in Corinth MS, printed the inside pages, bound the covers and pages togetherand shipped the magazines to subscribers. (National Geographic Magazine)
Another method for the mass-production of holograms -- the photo polymer-- was developed by The Polaroid Corporation and, later, by Dupont. Unlike "embossed" holograms(which are, in fact, transmission holograms with a mirror backing), thephoto polymer hologram is a reflection hologram that produces very bright images. This type hologram has been used successfully in advertising, direct mail, product packaging and point-of-sale displays. It has also been used effectively as holographic portraitures.
In March 1992, the Museum of Holography in New York closed. In January of1993 the MITMuseum, Cambridge, MA, acquired the complete holdings of the Museum of Holography, which included the largest and most complete collection of holograms in the world. The collection contains early pieces from the inception of the medium through its artistic and technical evolution, and highlights works by some the world's foremost holographers, including Margaret Benyon, Rudie Berkhout, Harriet Casdin-Silver, Mesissa Crenshaw, Paula Dawson,Setsuko Ishii, John Kaufman, Sam Moree, Ana Maria Nicholson, John Perry, Martin Richardson and Dan Schweitzer.
Holographic artists have greatly increased their technical knowledgeof the discipline and now contribute to the technology as well as the creative process. Artists that are not holographers, such as Salvador Dali, Bruce Naumann, Amy Greenfield, Yaacov Agam and Carl Frederick Reutersward, have commissioned holograms based on themes expressed in their other media. Scientists, such as Stephen Benton, Lloyd Cross, Nick Phillips, and John Webster have also advanced the technology through their art. The art form has become international, with major exhibitionsbeing held throughout the world.
OnNovember 9, 2003,Stephen A. Benton, (seeabout Steve Benton) inventor of the white-light transmission hologram (rainbow hologram) died. Two days later, 260 friends and colleagues gathered forBenton Vision, a symposium held at the MIT Media Labratory in Cambridge, MA to celebrate his many outstanding contributions to the field of holography, to MIT, and to the arts.
OnDecember 23, 2005, Emmett N. Leith died at the age of 78(seeabout Emmett Leith). OnMay 14, 2006, Yuri Denisyuk died in St. Petersburg, Russia.(seeIn memorian: Yuri Denisyuk 1927-2006). OnMay 23, 2009, Nicholas J. Phillips died in St. Petersburg, Russia.(seeIn memorian: Nicholas J. Pillips). OnSeptember 18, 2010, Rich Rallison died at the age of 65. Rallison pioneered the production of glass sandwich dichromate holograms that were used as jewelry pendants and other premium items in the 70s amd 80s.
A hologram can be made not only with the light waves of a laser, butalso with sound waves and other waves in the electro-magnetic spectrum.Holograms made with X-rays or ultraviolet light can record images of particles smaller than visible light, such as atoms or molecules. Microwave holography detects images deep in space by recording the radio waves they emit. Acoustical holography uses sound waves to "see through" solid objects.
Holography's unique ability to record and reconstruct both light andsound waves makes it a valuable tool for industry, science, business, andeducation. The following are some applications:
Double-exposed holograms (holographic interferometry)provide researchers with crucial heat-transfer data for the safe designof containers used to transport or store nuclear materials.
A telephone credit card used in Europe hasembossed surface holograms which carry a monetary value. When the cardis inserted into the telephone, a card reader discerns the amount due anddeducts (erases) the appropriate amount to cover the cost of the call.
Supermarket scanners read the bar codes onmerchandise for the store's computer by using a holographic lens systemto direct laser light onto the product labels during checkout.
Holography is used to depict the shock wavemade by air foils to locate the areas of highest stress. These hologramsare used to improve the design of aircraft wings and turbine blades.
A holographic lens is used in an aircraft "heads-up display" to allow a fighter pilot to see critical cockpit instruments while looking straight ahead through the windscreen. Similar systems are being researched by several automobile manufactures.
Magical, totally unique and lots of fun --candy holograms are the ultimate snack technology. Chocolates and lollipops have been transformed into holographic works of art by molding the candy's surface into tiny, prism-like ridges. When light strikes the ridges, it is broken into a rainbow of brilliant iridescent colors that display 3-D images.
Researchers at the University of Alabama in Huntsville are developing the sub- systems of a computerized holographic display. While the work focuses on providing control panels for remote driving, training simulators and command and control presentations, researchers believe that TV sets with 3-D images might be available for as little as $5,000 within the next ten years.
Holography is ideal for archival recording of valuables or fragile museum artifacts.
Scientists at Polaroid Corp. have developed a holographic reflector that promises to make color LCDs whiter and brighter. The secret lies in a transmission hologram that sits behind an LCD and reflects ambient light to produce a white background.
The arrival of the first prototypical optical computers, which use holograms as storage material for data, could have a dramatic impact on the overall holography market. The yet-to-be-unveiled optical computers will be able to deliver trillions of bits of information faster than the current generation of computers.
Independent projects at IBM and at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory have demonstrated the use of holograms to locate and retrieve information without knowing its address in a storage medium, but by knowing some of its content.
To better understand marine phytoplankton, researchers have developed an undersea holographic camera that generates in-line and off-axis holograms of the organisms. A computer controlled stage moves either a video camera or a microscope through the images, and the organisms can be measured as they were in their undersea environment
Sony Electronics uses a hologram in its digital cameras. A Sony-exclusive laser focusing system achieves accurate focus on subjects with little contrast in dark conditions. It projects a visible Class 1 laser hologram pattern directly onto the subject so the camera can detect the contrast between the edge of the laser pattern and the subject itself.
Scientific American
reports that scientists have developed a new tool for fighting forgers. The hologram-based technique produces a three-dimensional image of a handwriting sample that can be used to compare two John Hancocks and determine if they were both jotted by the same John.
Facial surgery and forensic science are benefiting from a portable holography system that can capture the shape and texture of faces in an instant. Following chemical development, the hologram is digitized to create a three dimensional computer model that is an exact replica of the patients face. The model is then used to aid surgical planning or forensic science investigations.
Imagine being able to record 100 movies on a disk the size of a CD - - or one day recording the contents of the Library of Congress on such a disk. These are the promises of holographic data storage.(Bell Labs)
The Air Force Scientific Research Office has taken the wraps off a research project that uses holography to create high-definition, 3-D images. Fixed holographic storage materials are replaced with low-cost, heigh efficiency dynamic ones. Complete scenes or objects are recorded within three minutes and stored for three hours.
An updatable holographic 3D display has been developed at College of Optical Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ. It is based on photorefractive polymers capable of recording and displaying new images every few minutes. This is the largest photorefractive 3D display to date (4 times 4 inches in size); it can be recorded within a few minutes, viewed for several hours without the need for refreshing, and can be completely erased and updated with new images when desired.
General Electric is working on a holographic storage medium that resembles a typical optical disc and allows it to store the equivalent of 100 DVDs. Holography, used for the three-dimensional images on some older credit cards for security, can also store binary data in the form of 1s and 0s.
A unique holographic teaching resource which captures mouth shapes in 3D has been developed by experts at De Montfort University (DMU) in Leicester and could become a vital tool for speech therapists.
While holography is often associated with artistic 3D images, it can also be used for many other purposes. In a new study, scientists have created holograms of atoms using laser-driven electron motion, which could lead to a new type of ultra-fast photoelectron spectroscopy. In the future, this type of holography could enable scientists to study the structures of molecules in a more direct way than before. (PhysOrg.com)
A new technique uses ordinary white light instead of a laser to make three-dimensional color holograms that can be viewed at any angle, something that could prove useful in the next generation of 3-D displays, Japanese researchers report. The method differs from conventional techniques because it's based on the activity of electrons on the surface of a metal film, or surface plasmons. The result is multicolored holograms, the colors of which stay the same when viewed from any angle, just like the original object.
Double-exposed holograms (holographic interferometry)provide researchers with crucial heat-transfer data for the safe designof containers used to transport or store nuclear materials.
