III Projection-Type Holography

Abstract

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses projection-type holography. The most outstanding feature of holography is its high information storage density. It is, therefore, a very promising method for three dimensional imaging that requires tremendous information storage capacity. However, in ordinary holographic reconstruction of a virtual image, a large photographic plate is required to obtain a wide visual field and a wide viewing zone. This fact, together with the need for the use of lasers, has greatly reduced the usefulness of holography as a three dimensional imaging technique. Several types of projection-type holography useful in overcoming the above drawbacks are described in the chapter. It is believed among the specialists working in this field that sometime in the near future, a tri-color, wide-visual-field/wide-viewing-zone three-dimensional image can be obtained from a hologram typically as small as 1 cm x 1 cm. Such an achievement can accelerate the application of the projection-type holography to practical three-dimensional imaging devices.