We propose parallel phase-shifting digital holographic microscopy (PPSDHM) which has the ability of three-dimensional (3-D) motion measurement using space-division multiplexing technique. By the PPSDHM, instantaneous information of both the 3-D structure and the phase distributions of specimens can be simultaneously acquired with a single-shot exposure. We constructed a parallel phase-shifting digital holographic microscope consisting of an optical interferometer and an image sensor on which micro polarizers are attached pixel by pixel. The validity of the PPSDHM was experimentally verified by demonstrating the single-shot 3-D imaging and phase-imaging ability of the constructed microscope.

Parallel two-step phase-shifting digital holography is a technique for single-shot implementation of phase-shifting interferometry and requires only the intensity distribution of the reference wave and spatial two phase-shifted holograms. We constructed a system of parallel two-step phase-shifting digital holography and experimentally demonstrated the technique, for the first time. The system uses an originally fabricated image sensor having an array of 2 × 1 micro polarizers. Each micro polarizer was attached on pixel by pixel. In the experiment, the unwanted images, the zero-order diffraction wave and the conjugate image, are removed from the reconstructed image of objects by the system, while the images superimpose on the image of objects reconstructed by Fresnel transform alone. Also the capability of single-shot and three-dimensional imaging is demonstrated by the system.

We propose an algorithm that can improve the quality of the reconstructed image from the single hologram recorded by the optical system of the parallel four-step phase-shifting digital holography. The proposed algorithm applies the image-reconstruction algorithm of parallel two-step phase-shifting digital holography to the hologram so as to reduce errors in the reconstructed image and eliminate ghosts. We numerically and experimentally confirmed that the proposed algorithm decreased 25% in terms of root mean square error in amplitude, and eliminated the ghosts, respectively.

We propose single-shot digital holography which is capable of simultaneously capturing both the information of multiple phase-shifted holograms and the distribution of the polarization. In this technique, a single image sensor records both the information required for phase-shifting interferometry and that of the polarization states of objects using an array of polarizers. The essence of the technique is the capability of imaging the distribution of the polarization of three-dimensional objects with a single-shot exposure by using the space-division multiplexing of holograms. The validity of the proposed technique was confirmed by the preliminary experiments.

We propose parallel phase-shifting color digital holography using two phase shifts. This technique enables the instantaneous acquisition of three-dimensional information of a moving color object. The interference fringe image that contains six holograms with two phase shifts for three wavelengths is recorded by a single shot exposure. Decreasing the degree of space-division multiplexing of these holograms makes it possible to suppress the degradation of the image quality owing to the aliasing caused by the multiplexing. Numerical simulation and preliminary experiments demonstrate the validity of the proposed technique; the reconstructed images of the proposed technique are clearer than those of the previously reported single-shot phase-shifting color digital holography that uses four phase steps.