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The use of optical diffraction to produce images
Author(s) -
Glenn William E.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of the society for information display
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.578
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1938-3657
pISSN - 1071-0922
DOI - 10.1889/1.1985148
Subject(s) - diffraction , optics , diffraction efficiency , computer science , modulation (music) , optoelectronics , materials science , physics , acoustics
— Images have been produced by modulating light by diffraction for over 100 years. Two Nobel prizes have been awarded for imaging techniques using diffraction. The modulation efficiency is quite high, and diffraction can be used to select the color as well as the intensity of an image. The process does not require polarized light. A wide variety of light modulators can be used to produce efficient diffractive images. This paper intends to follow the history of the use of diffraction to produce images and describe some of the newer techniques that have the potential of extending the use of diffractive imaging far into the future.