Performance evaluation of different optical schemes for realization of holographic printers

Abstract

Holography enables 3D visualization of scattered optical fields recorded from three dimensional (3D) objects. This has led to dedicated research efforts towards developments of holographic displays utilizing holographic imaging techniques. The fundamental drawback of holography is that real objects must be used to capture holograms, despite the fact that it is a generic approach for reconstructing 3D information. One of the most promising technologies for addressing this issue is holographic printing which is also able to synthesize combined real 3D and virtual objects. These printers are capable of producing holograms that can replicate all physiological depth signals of actual objects. Reconstructed images are therefore exceedingly realistic and avoid the accommodation-convergence dilemma that other 3-D display methods, such as stereoscopic displays have. Inside a light-sensitive material, reference and signal beams are utilized to create interference, but the recording is local and the procedure is a point-to-point recording of the overall interference pattern. Researchers have contributed in development of different optical schemes for holographic wavefront printers. In this study, we examine the different optical schemes that are adopted for development of holographic wavefront printer and compare their performance. The impact of different optical configurations on the quality of reconstructed images is analyzed in optical design simulation platform and experimental researches. In order to evaluate the performance of a particular set-up, we determine the structure similarity index measure (SSIM), viewing angle of reconstructed image, and diffraction efficiency of the recorded hologram. Experimental and simulated findings are studied and presented.