How Do Holograms Work? (Part 1 of 3)

Science-fiction is littered with holograms, and they’ve become a staple of anything set in the future. But, they’ve been around longer than you think.

Part 3 of 3 - Coming Soon!

Read More:

The History of Holography
“Hungarian scientist Denis Gabor invents holography (for which he is awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1971); he made two-dimensional (flat image) holograms with a mercury arc lamp using exposures of many hours.”

Lippmann’s and Gabor’s Revolutionary Approach to Imaging
“Both methods had the same goal of carrying image reproduction further in a way that was quite different from other earlier attempts made for the same purpose. To achieve this, Lippmann and Gabor chose a revolutionary approach to fundamental physics instead of following an evolutionary progress in engineering.”

How Holograms Work
“The microscopic interference fringes on a hologram don't mean much to the human eye. In fact, since the overlapping fringes are both dark and microscopic, all you're likely to see if you look at the developed film of a transmission hologram is a dark square. But that changes when monochrome light passes through it.”

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[TheTwick]

Yeh, this is a strictly visual subject. You need to show images of what you are talking about. I’m afraid the podcast (audio) format just doesn’t work here.

[jasonsapan]

Hey Trace, Thanks for doing this story. You got a lot of it right but not all. I'm a professional holographer (www.holographer.com) starting back in the late 60s so I know a thing or two. I'm glad you mentioned Lippmann, but his photography was more of a predecessor to holography. Incidentally, he was the mentor for Madam Curie, who won the Nobel Prize a few years before he did. Although Gabor also won the Nobel Prize, he didn't use lasers. They weren't even invented when he did his theory. He wanted to improve the focus on electron microscopes and didn't even think about 3D. It was his idea of using interfering waves to record images that distinguished him. Three dimensional laser created holograms began in the 60s when a Russian scientist, Yuri Denisyuk (basing his work on Lippmann) and an American team, Emmet Leith and Juris Upatniks (basing their work on Gabor), separately made the first holograms as we know them today. Also, you do not necessarily need a mirror. You do not have to even physically split the beam in two depending on the type of hologram you are making. And by the way, holography has always been able to have images that jump out into open space in front of the film. Feel free to contact me if you would like some fact checking or explanations for your upcoming shows. Best, Jason Sapan a.k.a. Dr. Laser

[lank_asif]

Great topic but unfortunately this sort of subject matter needs visual aides. This won't educate anyone that doesn't already understand the subject.

[DRMadeIt]

Trace left seeker months ago and his essence still lives. That’s legendary

[Omnifarious]

That has got to be one of the most confusing explanations I've ever heard for holograms.

[Master_Therion]

My friend *Graham* isn't very smart. We say he has a *hollow* head and call him Hologram.
Thankfully, he hasn't figured out why.

[daxtrdefluff]

That bar at the bottom is a little bit distracting. Maybe you should let it fade off the screen until it hits one of the points on the timeline and it reappears for a few seconds at the key points

[SaadMohammedGhori]

I really like seeker plus and I think it would make it easier for the viewer's to understand if there were diagrams or some other visuals.

[anteconfig]

Me: "What are holograms?"
Youtubers: "Hold that thought, I have to tell you about my socks."
Me: "..."

[PaulPaulPaulson]

I'll ignore your facts because I've already formed my opinion: Holograms are magic!

[CovertEuphoria]

Some visuals of what's being spoken about would've been nice.

[F_L_U_X]

Show some pictures of what you're talking about while you're talking. I love your stuff, but watching just you is boring.

[equesdeventusoccasus]

What about stacked hyperbolic mirrors facing each other with a hole cut in the center of the top one? Anything placed in the center of the bottom directly below the hole will have a perfect 3D image floating above the hole. I own a set of these mirrors, and they work.

[clark]

I'm so glad this show is back, kind of wish it was it's own channel again though.

[sebastianelytron]

Good topic, but Physics Girl's video on this can't be beat. So good luck Seeker, you'll need it.

[CharlesVanNoland]

Dang, for how much info is packed in here you'd think there'd be at least one single image or diagram as a visual aid.

[emanhobbit]

I was half listening and when he said imagine 2 ripples in a pond, I thought he said imagine 2 rips in time. I’m like uh.... can’t relate

[berni]

Didn't understand so much, I had to look for images because I think this is something that needs images, animations... visuals!

[julienheim]

This video is very interesting for all ages.

[Dufie]

Voting is absolutely critical, I support a blue wave!