The performance of two-center holographic recording is theoretically studied and described in detail. We present a systematic method for global optimization of two-center holographic recording. Whereas the method presented is general, we perform optimization for lithium niobate crystals doped with iron and manganese (LiNbO 3 :Fe:Mn). Both dynamic range (M/#) and sensitivity (S) are considered for global optimization, and the optimum design parameters for LiNbO 3 :Fe:Mn crystals are predicted. To achieve optimization we use both an analytic approach and a complete numerical approach. The absorption of light in the crystal is also considered. We show that the optimum design parameters for maximizing M/# are different from those for maximizing S. Therefore a trade-off exists between dynamic range and sensitivity. We also describe the complete dependence of S in two-center recording on the design parameters. We show in particular, for the first time to our knowledge, that S depends on the ratio of recording and sensitizing intensities and not on the absolute intensities.

The spherical beam volume hologram, recorded by a plane wave and a spherical beam, is investigated for spectroscopic applications in detail. It is shown that both the diffracted and the transmitted beam can be used for spectroscopy when the hologram is read with a collimated beam. A new method is introduced and used for analysis of the spherical beam volume hologram that can be extended for analysis of arbitrary holograms. Experimental results are consistent with the theoretical study. It is shown that the spherical beam volume hologram can be used in a compact spectroscopic configuration when the transmitted beam is monitored. Also, on the basis of the properties of the spherical beam hologram, the response of a hologram recorded by a plane wave and an arbitrary pattern is predicted. The information can be used to optimize holographic spectrometer design.

We present a new idea for diffuse source spectroscopy using a Fourier-transform volume holographic spectrometer formed by a Fourier-transform lens, a volume hologram, and a CCD. We show that this spectrometer can operate well under spatially incoherent light illumination. Furthermore, this spectrometer is less bulky, less sensitive to input alignment, and potentially more appropriate for implementation of highly sensitive spectrometers than conventional spectrometers.

We investigate the feasibility of designing spectral diversity filters using spherical beam volume holograms. Our experimental results qualitatively show the separation of the information of different incident wavelength channels using spherical beam volume holograms. The major trade-off in using these holograms is between the degree of spatial spectral diversity and the number of allowed spatial modes (or the divergence angle) of the incident beam.

We replace the traditional grating used in a dispersive spectrometer with a multiplex holographic grating to increase the spectral range sensed by the instrument. The multiplexed grating allows us to measure three different, overlapping spectral bands on a color digital focal plane. The detector's broadband color filters, along with a computational inversion algorithm, let us disambiguate measurements made from the three bands. The overlapping spectral bands allow us to measure a greater spectral bandwidth than a traditional spectrometer with the same sized detector. Additionally, our spectrometer uses a static coded aperture mask in the place of a slit. The aperture mask allows increased light throughput, offsetting the photon loss at the broadband filters. We present our proof-of-concept dispersion multiplexing spectrometer design with experimental measurements to verify its operation.