Denisyuk Holography: From Lippmann Photography to Color Holography

Bjelkhagen, Hans I., Glyndwr Univ.

doi:10.1117/3.2265060.ch11

Book: The Art and Science of Holography: A Tribute to Emmett Leith and Yuri Denisyuk

Editor(s): H. John Caulfield

Author(s): Hans Bjelkhagen

Published: 2004

https://doi.org/10.1117/3.2265060.ch11

Author Affiliations +

Abstract

In the early 1960s, Yuri Denisyuk introduced single-beam reflection holography, now known as Denisyuk holography. This holographic technique is of great importance since it can create remarkable image quality. Denisyuk’s invention was inspired by an old color photography technique, known as interferential color photography or Lippmann photography. The almost forgotten, hundred-year-old color photography technique is also remarkable. It is the only color-recording imaging technique that can record the entire visible color spectrum. Remarkably, it is not based on Maxwell’s three-color principle, the prevailing principle behind most current color imaging techniques. The natural color rendition obtained in a Lippmann photograph makes this 2D photographic technique very interesting. For example, the reproduction of human skin and metallic reflections look very natural, unlike in ordinary photographs. This chapter reviews Lippmann photography and modern versions of it. If a Denisyuk hologram is recorded with at least three lasers, full-color holograms can be obtained. Such holograms provide full parallax 3D color images with a large field of view. The virtual color image recorded in a holographic plate represents the most realistic-looking image of an object that can be obtained today. The extensive field of view adds to the illusion of beholding a real object rather than an image of it. The current status of color holography based on Denisyuk’s single-beam technique is discussed.