There is more to light than meets the eye, but it is exactly what is seen with the naked eye that intrigues us the most. Welcome to the science of holography, spectral imaging, and holographic projection. If this topic and the topic interest you as much as I do, I would like to recommend a highly informative book on the topic. The title of the book is:

“Principles of holography” by Howard W. Smith, published by Wiley-Interscience, New York, NY, 1969, 239 pages, Library of Congress number: 69-16129, SBN: 471-08340-2.

The author of this book was a senior research assistant at Eastman Kodak Company’s research laboratories in Rochester New York, and their R&D department was at the forefront of this technology at the time. As you know, the Eastman Kodak company took innovation very seriously and had contributed billions of dollars to maintain market share in the past. At the time this book was written, it was probably one of the most comprehensive books on the subject of holography.

Today, of course, there is much more to know, but a lot of the basics are here, and this is a good book to start with if you want to learn about this topic. If you want to learn about the history of holography, it’s all here too. Likewise, all the math that goes with holographic imaging and holography is here too. The book describes the basic arrangements for holography, including flat holograms and volume holograms, along with the general theory of each.

There are many mathematical equations for the projection of light, temporal filters, linear motion, and motion images of oscillating objects. You will learn how to light with the beam and what happens when you adjust the bandwidth or the recording medium. There’s also third-order aberration analysis, and the book even gets into lasers.

In fact, I’ve read quite a few books on holography, and I’ve even written a book on the subject titled “Holographic Projection Technologies of the Future: Killer Applications”, so I know a thing or two on the subject. I can tell you that this is probably one of the best books ever written on the subject, and to think that it was written in 1969 leaves me completely blown away. Therefore, I recommended it to anyone who is serious about research in spectral imaging or holographic technology.

Everyone should be interested in this topic because in the next five years your iPad, iPhone, smartphone or tablet will allow video conferencing via holograms. That technology will soon be here, and many of the world’s largest companies are now bringing that technology to the forefront. They are designing chips that will allow this type of communication and the equipment to run it. In fact, I hope you consider all of this and take it seriously. If you have comments, concerns, and / or questions or case studies, please email me as soon as possible.