The Holography Times, February 2010, Volume 3, Issue No 9
1. the holography times
TM
The journal of the hologram industry
February 2010 | Volume 3 | Issue 9 www.homai.org
Authentication
Data Storage
Energy Systems
3D Display & Illustration
www.homai.org
The Holography Times
Holography
THE ULTIMATE TECHNOLOGY
1
The Holography Times is a quarterly newsletter published by Hologram Manufacturers Association of India (HoMAI).
3. www.homai.org
The Holography Times
It’s hard to believe that 2009 is over and we’re well into the year 2010. The year
2009 ended with another enjoyable and memorable holographic journey. We would
personally like to thank each one for collectively moving forward this past year,
striving for the progress of the Indian holographic Industry. As we enter the New Year
we are excited about several initiatives that we have in place and new enhancements
scheduled for 2010.
Holography dates from 1947 and today, over these years, innovations in this space
reshape how the world works, how people organize themselves, and how they conduct
their lives. Scientists now view holograms for many new uses- from images on credit
cards and CD-ROMs to thwart counterfeiters, to medical image scans that recreate
images of the human brain. Today, when technology has increased its importance in
our lives, holography has also increased its share and followed suit.
Readers, welcoming you to this issue of The Holography Times, we cover some of
the futuristic application of holography all set to change the landscape of our lives.
This is also in concurrence with the mission statement of IHMA. The cover story
focuses on establishing holography as a scientific stream and not a product. As it
is the start of a landmark year, this quarterly edition serves as a bookmark for many
objects of interest, which may enable to make more informed decisions and provide
guidance. In this issue, Mario R. Keller, Product Manager for High-Security Foils at
Louisenthal Paper Mill, a wholly owned subsidiary of Giesecke & Devrient, explains
the latest trends in foil design and advantages security foils offer as opposed to other
security features. We also bring forward some of the glaring truths about currency
counterfeiting, apart from latest holography happenings, industry news and events.
We look forward to a productive 2010 and appreciate and value the input of our
members.
Best wishes for the New Year!
Team HoMAI!
In this issue
Editorial
News Bytes 4
Company Profile
6
Even a street kitchen cook
needs to be able to tell whether
a banknote is genuine.
7
Holography -
The Ultimate
Technology 10
Industry Updates 15
Happy New Year!
Interview with
Mario R. Keller
Do You Know?
Interesting facts about money
9
Review 14
HOLOPACK-HOLPRINT 2009
3
4. The Holography Times News Bytes
www.homai.org
The International Hologram
Manufacturers Association (IHMA),
the organisation that represents and
promotes hologram industry worldwide,
elected a new board and unveils new
mission statement during its recent
AGM held in Budapest, Hungary. The
new mission statement comes as a move
aimed at advancing the understanding,
innovation & development in holography
around the world. The new mission
statement states “The mission of the
IHMA is to support, set standards for and
advance holography through promoting
and encouraging the understanding,
use and development of holograms and
holographic technology for:
- the authentication of products and
documents;
- decoration and illustration;
- displays and display systems;
- data storage and processing;
- energy systems;
- environmental improvements;
- Healthcare and other fi elds that
emerge as potential applications of
holography for the protection and
benefi t of individuals and society at
large”.
At the event, IHMA also elected its
new chairman and representatives for
the year 2010. Adam Scheer, marketing
executive of US-based optical solutions
provider JDSU, has been named Chairman
of the IHMA board. Adam Scheer
said: ‘Innovation is fl ourishing in the
hologram industry and it is encouraging
to see new ideas being generated by both
established players and companies new
to the arena.” He joins existing board
members Khalid Khanani of Pakistan
based Metatex’s and Rob Levy of
Holo-Source Corporation, also in the US.
He is joined by API Holographics’ Alan
Lake. Deputy Representatives for North
America and the EU/EFTA are still to be
announced but the confi rmed regional
IHMA representatives are:
• Gurkiran Dhillon - Alpha Lasertek
(India) – Asian representative
• Manoj Kochar - Holofl ex (India)
– Deputy Asian representative
• Alan Lake – API Holographic (USA)
- North American representative
• Pedro de Eguiluz Selvas - Fast Forms
(Mexico) - Deputy North American
representative
• Simone Foine - Centro Grafi co
(Italy) - EU/EFTA representative
• Goran Milinovic - System
Intelligence Products (Serbia) - East
Europe/CIS/FSU representative
• Dmitry Paltsev - First Print Yard
Holographics (Russia) - Deputy East
Europe/CIS/FSU representative
• U K Gupta - Holostik India Ltd -
HoMAI representative (Hologram
Manufacturers Association of India)
Source: www.ihma.org
IHMA unveils new mission statement eyeing
future of holography
Like our shoelaces or electrical cords,
light can also get twisted into knots.
Now, scientists at the University
of Bristol, England, have used a
computer-controlled hologram and
theoretical physics to turn a light beam
into pretzel-like shapes and knots. This
twisted feature not only leads to various
images, but has implications for future
laser devices as well.
Lead researcher Mark Dennis said, “In
a light beam, the fl ow of light through
space is similar to water fl owing in
a river. Even though the light from
a laser pointer travels in a straight
line, it can also fl ow in whirls and
eddies. These swirls of light are called
optical vortices. Along the vortices the
intensity of light reaches zero, or no
light. The light all around us is fi lled
with these dark lines, even though
we can’t see them. Our work actually
twists dark fi laments within the light
beam into knots.”
These optical vortices are created with
holograms, which direct the fl ow of
light. By using knot theory (a branch
of abstract mathematics inspired by
everyday knots), researchers have created
customized holograms and refl ected
a regular laser beam from them. The
hologram acts like a fi lter for incoming
light, manipulating the phase of the light
wave. So each point on the hologram,
changes the point of the wave’s cycle so
that it fl ows around a dark knot.
Dennis said. “For me it shows how fi nely
we can control the fl ow and propagation
of laser light using holograms. This
degree of control is likely to fi nd
applications in future laser devices.”
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Twisted Physics:
Scientists create light knots with holograms
By reflecting a laser beam from a specially designed
hologram (shown here as the colored circle), physicists
created knots of dark filaments (represented by the
colored knot).
4
5. GE developed new class of holographic materials to
secure future ID CARD’s
Scientists at GE Global Research, in
collaboration with SABIC Innovative
Plastics, have developed a new class of
holographic materials that could enable
the Secure ID card of the future. In this
new technology the materials can be
processed in plastic, serving as a next
generation platform for a variety of
ID badges or cards, including driver’s
licenses and passports, employee badges,
credit cards, identity cards for health
insurance and secure access.
This Secure ID technology uses volume
holography to store information in a much
higher security format. Unlike surface
holograms, GE-SABIC Innovative
Plastics’ holographic technology can
store multiple holograms in a plastic
card that allows for more robust
security and personalized features,
making it virtually impossible for
a card to be altered. Another unique
aspect of the “innvovative plastic”
special holographic material is that
they are injection-moldable and can be
shaped, which is a fi rst for the industry.
According to GE sources the technology
has numerous marketing opportunities as
it can be used to verify the authenticity
of a variety of products, ranging from
laptop computers, cell phones and other
electronic devices to other consumer
goods. These Secure ID Cards also could
enable new applications in the security
and authentication sectors. For example,
fi ngerprinting and biometric scans used
today to fast track airport screening,
could be accelerated and made more
robust by storing these records on the
Secure ID card as a high resolution
holographic image.
“Ensuring the security of our bank
cards and different forms of ID is
essential in this increasingly digital age.
GE-SABIC Innovative Plastics’ Secure
ID card technology will provide a true
step change in the level of security,
making it virtually impossible to
steal a person’s identity or tamper
with their cards in any way.” said
Dr. Moitreyee Sinha, Manager,
Functional and Optical Materials Lab.
Scotlands’ Clydesdale Bank joins the hologram club
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The Holography Times
Clydesdale bank, one of Scotland’s
largest banks, has joined the elite
club of Bank Issuing Authorities relying
on holograms for security. The new
notes will be the fi rst in the UK to use a
new “depth image” hologram security
feature in the form of a moving
image behind the prominent front
picture. The Depth Image™ Hologram,
developed by De Larue has been
originated using classical holography
and applied in OVD patch format. Till
date, more than 90 issuing authorities are
using holograms on more than 250 bank
note denominations.
Clydesdale Bank introduced the new £10
world heritage banknote, the fourth of the
Clydesdale Bank’s new world heritage
banknotes, featuring Robert Burns on
the front (regarded as the national poet
of Scotland) and Edinburgh’s old and
new towns on the back. The strong
portrait subjects, big bold denomination
numerals and the use of color give each
note its own individual character while
the sweeping views of the Scottish world
heritage sites gives rich imagery and
personality to the back of the notes.
Source: www.cbonline.co.uk
The first in the Bank Note world to include Depth Image™ Hologram
Dr. Sinha added, “We can store 3-D
images of a person’s face, record their
fi ngerprints and even create unique
animations within our holographic
plastic materials. We also can control
the visibility of what a person can see on
the card. This will enable varying levels
of security features that are needed for
different applications.”
GE scientists have been working on
holographic technology for over six
years. One of the biggest achievements
of the program has been the ability
to process holographic materials in
plastic. These holographic materials can
be directly laminated to a card, injection
molded into a part, extruded into fi lm, or
cast into a very thin fi lm. The technology
and application development teams at
SABIC Innovative Plastics, along with
scientists at GE Global Research, are
targeting commercialization of this
new class of holographic materials by
2012.
Source: www.ge.com
News Bytes
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6. The Holography Times Company Profi le
www.homai.org
Holostik India Limited offers
security solutions for protection/
authentication of identity documents.
Holostik is the leading Security
Hologram manufacturer in India,
since 1991, and one of the largest
manufactures in the world with over
5000 customers in Government,
Public and Private sectors. Holostik
has all facilities under one roof
under high security environment. We
supply holographic security solutions
to various prestigious government
bodies, for identity document
protection.
• Holostik has two types of
Master Origination machines-
Conventional 2D/3D machine and
1,00,000 DPI Dot Matrix master
origination machine, which offers
ability to produce combination
masters with added security.
• Our R&D (master lab) team has
developed certain high security
features (both overt and covert),
which are very difficult for other
holographers to develop.
• Holostik has an in-house printing
facility, which offers up to 8
colour UV printing options on
paper and 10 colour printing
options on film, providing latest
high security features in printing
available in the world.
• Our product range includes
regular security holograms, paper
products incorporating security
features, polyester / PVC / other
plastics based film products and/
or a combination product of one
or more of the above substrates
with holographic security.
There are a number of methods that can
be adopted for securitization of identity
documents depending on volume of
documents to be securitized, method
of application and resources available.
Thus, Holostik offers security holograms
in
(i) Pressure sensitive form
(ii) Hot Stamping Foil form
(iii)Transparent Holography form and
(iv) Laminate form, as per customer
requirements.
The most common form is to apply
Security Hologram on to the existing
identity document. This hologram can
be affi xed on the document separately or
in a manner so that it partially covers the
photograph of the bearer. As it is ‘tamper
evident’ in nature, any attempt to remove
it will result in its destruction. At Holostik
we offer, both Pressure sensitive
holograms that are affi xed manually and
automatically and Hot Stamping Foil
based holograms that are affi xed using
a Hot Stamping machine, in standard and
customised shapes. Pressure sensitive
security hologram can be of Transparent/
Semi-Transparent type.
Another method is to use pre-printed
identity document having holographic
strip running through. In this method,
Holostik prints the required identity
document and applies a strip of security
hologram as per design. This method
does not require hologram handling
at the end user, rather only printing of
the individual card details. The use of
a security strip offers a larger area and
is also visually appealing. In the two
forms of application discussed above,
the fi nal document can be used as is
basis or can be further laminated
within a pouch. The use of pouch adds
another layer of security & also enhances
life of the document.
Holostik offers a third option which
combines benefi ts of tamper evident
transparent security holography with
transparent laminated holographic pouch,
offering high security with fl exibility of
use. Customer needs to print data on to
the document type, paste photographs etc
& then place document in the pouch and
pass it through a pouch laminator. The
end product protected by the laminated
pouch, it has see-through holographic
features through out the fascia, is tamper
evident, visually appealing and easy to
authenticate, making it is easy to protect,
securitize and authenticate identity
documents.
Holostik provides tailor made solutions
for the I.D. Cards depending on the
customer’s requirement i.e. security
solutions, semi high security solutions
and high security solutions. But, we
always incorporate certain security
features in all of the above three
categories so that it becomes extremely
diffi cult for counterfeiters to copy.
Today, many of the important and
sensitive documents worldwide are
protected using our tailor made
security products. What ever be the
customers’ need, Holostik can provide
the right solution because of its rigorous
R&D and wide exposure, experience
in holography and allied products. Just
allow us to become your ‘Security
Partner’ to help you in securing your
products and we assure of your complete
satisfaction.
For further information
contact at holostik@vsnl.com or
Visit : www.holostik.com
6
7. www.homai.org
The Holography Times
History
India was one of the earliest issuers
of coins (circa 6th century BC).The
fi rst “rupee” is believed to have
been introduced by Sher Shah Suri
(1486–1545), based on a ratio of 40
copper pieces (paisa) per rupee.
Among the earliest issues of
paper rupees were those by the
Bank of Hindustan (1770–1832),
the General Bank of Bengal and
Bihar (1773–75, established by
Warren Hastings) and the Bengal
Bank(1784–91), amongst others.
Government of India issued
currency notes till the formation of
RBI on 1st April 1935.
The fi st Governor, Sir Osborne
Smith did not sign any bank notes;
they were signed by Sir James
Taylor -the Second Governor.
In 1987, 2000 and 1000
denomination notes were
introduced.
RBI introduced a new “Mahatma
Gandhi Series’ in 1996, after the
advancement of reprographic
techniques.
In the news
Fake currency was seized
amounting to Rs. 5.57 crore in
2002, Rs. 6.81 crore in 2004 and
Rs. 8 crore in 2007; the amount
touched nearly Rs. 15 crore in
2009.
Five states, including Uttar
Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra,
Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka
have so far reported the maximum
seizure of fake notes.
The government has decided to set
up fi ve “special cells” to check the
circulation of fake Indian currency
notes to be controlled by the CBI.
These centres will be set up in
Chandigarh, Kokata, Guwahati,
Lucknow and Delhi.
Currently India imports its entire
requirement of currency paper
for Rs. 100, Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000
notes from 6 companies in the
United Kingdom, the Netherlands,
Germany, Italy and France.
Now, a joint venture paper mill is
being established between Security
Printing and Minting Corporation
of India and Bharatiya Reserve
Bank Note Mudran, for indigenous
production of security paper for
currency notes.
Kores India is set to introduce
a unique counterfeit currency
detector that has the capability to
scan 1,200 notes per minute and
reject fake notes, called Kores
Fusion.
In Bihar, the state Criminal
Investigation Department (CID)
in association with Reserve Bank
of India (RBI), has produced a
short documentary that explains
the differences between fake and
genuine notes.
Did you really know?
In INR, the ISO code for the Indian
Rupee, the fi rst two letters stand
for the country name & the third
the currency, like IN for India & R
=Rupee.
Each Indian bank note carries its
amount written in 17 languages
(English & Hindi on the front
and 15 others on
back). There are 17
languages on any
note given by RBI.15
0n the left corner of
the backside of the
note and the other
languages is English
and Hindi on the front
of the note.
The origin of the word Rupee is
from the Sanskrit word for Silver,
which is Rupyakam when it was
minted into a coin. The word later
became Rupya, Rupaiya or Roopa
in some parts of country. When the
Britishers took authority of India,
they unifi ed all these pronunciations
in to a single word, Rupee which
we use today. In Indonesia, the unit
of currency is still Rupiya closest
to its Sanskrit ancestor.
The Security Thread was introduced
for the 1st time in India after the
1940’s war, when the Japanese
tried to destabilize Indian currency
with Re 10 forged notes.
Such threads with holography are
called holographic security threads
used for protecting fi nancial
documents like Currency, bank
Agreement as well as ID documents
like Passport and Identity card.
Do You Know?
Interesting facts about money
Holographic
Security
Thread
The first note issued by Reserve Bank of India
Sir James Taylor
7
8. Interview with Mario R. Keller
Interview
www.homai.org
The Holography Times
Even a street kitchen cook needs to be
able to tell whether a banknote is genuine.
The Holography Times: Mr. Keller, what
advantages do security foils offer as opposed to
other widely used features?
Keller: Foil is a material that can
be worked with using much more
sophisticated technologies than paper.
Banknote paper has a coarse surface;
foil, on the other hand, is very smooth.
That allows you to achieve completely
different effects, holograms for example.
That characteristic also enables you to
apply multiple machine-readable layers,
each with a different function, such as
electrical or magnetic properties.
The Holography Times: How long have foil-based
elements been around?
Keller: Security threads have been used
in banknotes for many years now. In
the beginning, the threads were made of
polyester. Fifteen years ago, however,
when color copiers and scanners became
mass market products, security threads
and foils took on a greater signifi cance. If
you vacuum coat the foil with aluminum,
the surface becomes highly refl ective.
This causes the light of the copier to
overexpose the surface, making that part
of the copy appear black. Roughly 10
years ago, the fi rst holographic stripes
were introduced as an additional foil-based
security feature. In this case, the
foil merely serves as a substrate for
processing the transparent varnish and
applying it to the surface of the banknote.
Afterwards, the foil itself is removed.
The fi lm of varnish can be embossed
with holographic structures as well as
given other optically variable effects.
The Holography Times: Holographic foils are
being used more and more for commercial
applications. To what extent is this development
affecting production of banknote security foils?
Keller: That trend has given us
signifi cant impetus. Since the fi rst
security foils appeared on banknote
paper, Louisenthal has endeavored to
use its manufacturing process to clearly
distinguish itself from the commercially
manufactured foil-based features. Take
holograms for example. Initial designs
were simple geometric patterns. Back
then, that was suffi cient. Nowadays, even
commercial holographic foils make use
of geometric patterns. For that reason,
we have begun designing holograms
with easily recognizable motifs, for
example, a portrait of a famous person
like Germany’s Johann Wolfgang von
Goethe. The best approach is to integrate
the portrait into the banknote by means
of various technologies: in the paper as
a watermark, during printing as an offset
or intaglio element, and as a true color
hologram on the holographic stripe.
That means the various technologies
are cross-integrated into the banknote’s
design, and people on the street are able
to compare the different manifestations
of the portrait without the aid of
special instruments, thereby reassuring
themselves that the note they are holding
is genuine.
The Holography Times: What other developments
are characteristic of the production process?
Keller: We generate effects that are
atypical for the commercial sector. For
example, we create dynamic effects
Mario R. Keller
The security thread has proved itself to be a reliable security feature for currency notes. Nowadays, however,
foil-based elements utilizing new technologies are also of considerable importance. Mario R. Keller, Product
Manager for High-Security Foils at Louisenthal Paper Mill, a wholly owned subsidiary of Giesecke & Devrient,
explains the latest trends in foil design and manufacturing.
8
9. www.homai.org
The Holography Times
that show objects in motion. Taiwan is
a case in point. In Taiwan, baseball is
the national pastime. That’s why one
of their currency denominations shows
a baseball bat hitting a ball. Another
method is to create 2-D or 3-D effects
in which certain parts of the holographic
image appear deep inside the note or
virtually leap out of it.
The Holography Times: You mean security
foil trends have a significant effect on the
origination process?
Keller: Among other things. Origination
refers to the process of transferring the
design to a device such as an electron
beam imager or an isolation table. In
2002 and 2003, Louisenthal invested
a considerable amount in its own
origination hardware and software.
We have the ability to use our very
specialized technologies to design and
produce security features that cannot be
easily imitated.
The Holography Times: To what extent have
innovations have been made in other foil-based
technologies?
Keller: In the past, we had holographic
stripes with continuous motifs that
stretched across an entire sheet of
banknotes. Today, we attempt to apply
motifs that match the height of the note,
especially when depicting portraits. The
fi nished product, however, should not
have part of the head cut off. Moreover,
there is a trend towards combining
more than one optically variable
element on security foils. A hologram
with color shifting and/or microlens
arrays is one example. A shift in color
becomes apparent when the banknote is
viewed from two different angles. That
enables you to see two different colors,
for example, green and magenta. The
advantage is that the complexity of the
applied stripe increases enormously,
which in turn, heightens resistance to
counterfeiting.
The Holography Times: Security foils thus make
it possible for people to distinguish a counterfeit
banknote from the genuine article?
Keller: Yes. A security expert in Asia
once told me even a street kitchen
cook needs to be able to tell whether a
banknote is genuine. This is where foil-based
security features are especially
come in. Allow me to cite two examples.
First, Louisenthal developed a new
type of banknote with a security feature
consisting of a window covered by
special transparent foil. The foil can
be used to place easily recognizable
elements for authentication inside the
window. When the note is viewed against
a light background, a number indicating
its denomination can be seen. Placing the
banknote on a dark surface causes the
number to disappear, revealing a series
of stripes in the window.
Second, at present, the most commonly
used material for vacuum coating
holographic stripes is a metal, generally
aluminum. We are working on the
assumption that over the medium term,
so-called bimetallic stripes will become
the norm. That is to say, we produce a
number of image and hologram features
in aluminum and others using a different
metal, chromium or copper, for example.
The varying colors of each metal produce
different visual effects, which can be
easily recognized by average people.
Producing these kinds of security foils is
very complicated, however.
The Holography Times: Which member of the
G&D group of companies is responsible for
manufacturing security foils?
Keller: Louisenthal Paper Mill, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Giesecke
& Devrient. We have two plants, and
our main focus is on banknote paper
production. In 2003, we constructed an
additional facility for processing security
fi lms.
The Holography Times: Just how cost-effective
are security foils?
Keller: Since production at Louisenthal
is carried out via a security partnership,
we have very short transport routes.
That keeps costs down and guarantees a
high degree of security, since we don’t
have to transport the fi lms ourselves.
This provides us with an advantage in
quality because we know the best way
to integrate paper and foil, for example,
where selecting the right adhesive for
the substrate is concerned. All the know-how
surrounding these technologies is
found here in house. That enables us to
produce the best possible foils in terms of
security, quality, and cost-effectiveness.
Published with permission of G&D,
for more information contact
Pressesprecherin / Press Offi cer, Corporate
Communications
Giesecke & Devrient GmbH,
Prinzregentenstr. 159, 81677 Munich /
Germany
daniela.gaigl@gi-de.com or
visit http://www.gi-de.com
If you find a fake note in
your possession, and cannot
establish the source, you can
only forgo your money. The
best thing is to be vigilant.
Interview
9
10. Invented in 1947, this Gabor technology has been continually evolving since the past 60 years, its strength being- Innovation.
In 1988, Austria produced the 5000 schilling banknote (Mozart) using foil hologram application to a paper banknote. Again
in 1989, when GLAXO first used tamper-evident holograms to seal packs of Zantac, holography proved itself as the best overt
security technology for authentication. This journey has been on its road to success with drastic developments in holography.
Scientists now have taken their own view at holograms for a slew of new uses-from images on credit cards and CD-ROMs to
thwart counterfeiters, to medical image scans that recreate images of the human brain. There is a common misconception in
peoples mind that hologram / holography is a product. Holography is the name of scientific stream and not a product. The article
reviews the diversified applications of this technology responsible for emerging breakthroughs of the 21st century.
Emerging future applications
A) Authentication of products and documents
Today, new generation holographic technology provides overt
fi rst-line authentication as well as covert features for second line
authentication.
New Holographic materials
- A major limiting factor
so far for commercial
breakthrough of volume
holography has been the
lack of a high performance
material which is suitable for
industrial mass production
processes.
i) Bayfol® HX which will be
introduced to the market in
2010 by Bayer Material Science will fi ll this gap. This next
generation instant holographic material combines full-color
holographic performance with ease of processing.
ii) GE-SABIC Innovative Plastics’ holographic technology
can store multiple holograms in a plastic card that allows
for more robust security and personalized features, making
it virtually impossible for a card to be altered. In this new
technology the materials can be processed in plastic, serving
as a next generation platform for a variety of ID badges or
cards, including driver’s licenses and passports, Employee
badges, Credit cards, Identity cards for health insurance and
secure access.
B) Data storage & processing
(Figure 1)
Figure 1
www.homai.org
The Holography Times
10
Cover Story
Holography
THE ULTIMATE TECHNOLOGY
11. In holographic data storage, an entire “page” of information is
stored at once as an optical interference pattern within a thick,
photosensitive optical material. It has several advantages- It is
able to break through the density limits of conventional storage
since it goes beyond recording only on the surface, to recording
through the full depth of the medium. Also it achieves higher
data transfer rates than current optical storage devices since other
technologies record one data bit at a time, whereas holography
allows 1 million bits of data to be written and read out in single
fl ashes of light.
Holographic memory systems offer far more storage capacity
than CDs and DVDs – even “next-generation” DVDs like
Blu-ray and their transfer rates leave conventional discs in
the dust. However price and complexity of holographic storage
hold them back from mass consumption. Recent changes have
made the holographic versatile disc (HVD) a viable option for
consumers.
i) Holographic Versatile Disc (Figure 2)
The Holographic Versatile Disc (HVD) is an optical disc
technology. It employs a technique known as collinear
holography, whereby two green laser beams are collimated
in a single beam. The green laser reads data encoded as laser
interference fringes from a holographic layer near the top of the
disc. A Blue laser is used as the reference beam to read servo
information from a regular CD-style aluminum layer near the
bottom. Servo-information is used to monitor the position of the
read head over the disc, similar to the head, track, and sector
information on a conventional hard disk drive. On a CD or DVD
this servo-information is interspersed amongst the data.
A dichroic mirror layer between the holographic data and the
servo data refl ects the green laser while letting the red laser
pass through. This prevents interference from refraction of
the green laser off the servo data pits and is an advance over
past holographic storage media, which either experienced too
much interference, or lacked the servo data entirely, making
them incompatible with current CD and DVD drive technology.
These discs have the capacity to hold up to 6 terabytes (TB) of
information. The HVD also has a transfer rate of 1Gbit/s (125
MB/s). Sony, Philips, TDK, Panasonic and Optware all plan to
release 1 TB capacity discs in 2019—although HVD standards
were approved and published on June 28, 2007, no company has
released an HVD as of January 17, 2010.
ii) Holographic Versatile Card (HVC) (Figure 3)
Figure 3: Holographic versatile card (HVC)
Optware, maker of the 1TB Holographic Versatile Disc, is to
introduce yet another high capacity storage system based on the
same technology — the Holographic Versatile Card. These little
credit card-sized card will hold 30GB of data and have a write
speed 3 times faster than Blu-ray. One of its main advantages
compared with discs is the lack of moving parts when played.
C) Research & Development / Health Care (Figure 4)
Holographic interferometry is used by researchers and industry
designers to test and design many things, from tyres and engines
to prosthetic limbs and artifi cial bones and joints.
- Supermarket and department store scanners use a holographic
lens system that directs laser light onto the bar codes of the
merchandise.
- Holographic optical elements (HOE’s) are used for navigation
by airplane pilots. A holographic image of the cockpit
instruments appears to fl oat in front of the windshield. This
Figure 2 : HVD work structure
Figure 4: Holographic optical element used for navigation
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The Holography Times
11
Cover Story
12. The Holography Times Cover Story
allows the pilot to keep his eyes on the runway or the sky
while reading the instruments. This feature is available on
some models of automobiles.
- Medical doctors can use three-dimensional holographic CAT
scans to make measurements without invasive surgery. This
technique is also used in medical education. Holographic
imaging system has been proved to be promising for cancer
treatment planning.
D) Display & Illustrations
- Sony Electronics uses holographic technology in their digital
cameras. A holographic crystal is used to allow the camera
to detect the edge of the subject and differentiate between it
and the background. As a result, the camera is able to focus
accurately in dark conditions.
- Future colour liquid crystal displays (LCD’s) will be brighter
and whiter as a result of holographic technology. Scientists
at Polaroid Corp. have developed a holographic refl ector that
will refl ect ambient light to produce a whiter background.
Holographic TV
In 2008, researchers at the University of Arizona were able to
develop a breakthrough technology: the creation of an updateable
3D display. While in its earliest stages of development,
holographic TV is a technology that is being given serious
attention.
- Optical holographic computers will be capable of delivering
trillions of bits of information faster than the latest
computers.
E) Energy Systems
Holographic Solar Plate
The holographic planar concentrator provides more power at
low level insolation. This new technology is a great solution
for area with low level of insolation providing more than 30%
increment in converting sun shine into usable energy. (HPC)
is built up from several layers of fi lm composed of gelatin on
polyethylene terephthalate. In each fi lm, holographic optical
elements are imprinted using diode-pumped solid-state lasers.
The holographic stack diffracts wavelengths that are usable by
the solar cells while allowing unusable wavelengths to pass
through unabsorbed. The usable energy is guided via total
internal refl ection at the glass/air interface to strings of solar
cells, resulting in up to a threefold concentration of energy per
unit area of photovoltaic material.
Other
F) Electron Holography
Electron holography is the application of holography techniques
to electron waves rather than light waves. It is commonly used to
study electric and magnetic fi elds in thin fi lms, as magnetic and
electric fi elds can shift the phase of the interfering wave passing
through the sample. Electron holography can be used to measure
and observe a wide variety of electro-magnetic phenomena such
as the magnetic fi elds in superconductors or recording media,
the electric fi elds in pn junctions, specimen thickness, mean
inner potentials of materials, dislocations, strain fi elds, electron
microscope lens aberrations and much more.
With its multifold applications, today’s holographic age has
become a time incredible achievement and discovery. With
Holographic TV continuous innovation its becomes the Ultimate technology.
www.homai.org
12
14. www.homai.org
The Holography Times
Review HOLOPACK-HOLPRINT 2009
Organised by the IHMA, the 17th
annual Excellence in holography
awards, recognized outstanding industry
success and achievement. Delegates from
the holography community attended the
Holopack•Holo-print® conference, held
fi ttingly in Budapest, the birthplace of the
inventor of the hologram, Denis Gabor.
The awards were given to organizations
that introduced the most innovative or
commercially viable hologram product/
technique over the year. The quality of
entries demonstrated that technology
coupled with imaginative applications
reinforces the important role holography
plays, particularly in tackling anti-counterfeiting
and authentication.
Indian hologram Industry also reached new
heights as one of the HOMAI member’s
Holostik India Ltd. won 3 awards for
innovation, promotion & packaging at the
IHMA Excellence in Holography Awards
2009. Holostik received the award for its
new “Innovation in Holographic Production
“& OEM product for Pharmaceutical
Industry. Holographic blister packaging
is a product in which low OD metallizing
is done on holographic embossing without
touching the sealing side of PVC and
thereby ensuring that no existing changes
are required, saving time and money.
A new holographic security fi lm on
polycarbonate (PC) from optical solutions
provider JDSU, received the prize for
the ‘Best Applied Security Product’.
Holofuse™ is a laminate layer for PC ID
cards, so it requires no additional card
manufacturing stage, and the material
bonds at the molecular level.
Another development came from
Specialized Enterprise Holography LLC,
which has developed a new holographic
security feature for potential ID and
document applications among others. Its
new T.I.G.R.A. (Transparent Interacting
Gratings) security device won the
‘Innovation in Holographic Technique’
category. T.I.G.R.A. comprises two
holograms, each partially demetallised in
a pattern of lines, so that when these are
mounted together they produce a dynamic
moiré pattern.
Decorative paper producer Hazen Paper
won the ‘Best Origination’ Award for
an eye-catching holographic calendar.
The ‘Smooth Sailing’ 2009 calendar
was recognised for its innovative use of
advanced holographic technology.
The potential use of holography in
intellectual property protection was
illustrated in a ground breaking project by
Optaglio, which won the ‘Best Applied
Decorative Product’. The company used
holographic technology in a publication
featuring stories by young mid-European
based writers using tiny holograms to hold
the complete works in nanotext together
with the authors’ portraits.
The Brian Monaghan Award for Business
Achievement was given to Dino Radice
of Centro Grafi co DG in recognition of
his transformation of the company from
an intaglio printer to a hologram and
holographic substrate producer. This has
been achieved not only by re-positioning
the company but also through the
installation of purpose-built equipment to
enable Centro Grafi co to become a highly
respected supplier of fi lms to surface-relief
hologram producers.
These awards have shown how innovation
continues to push the boundaries for new
holographic applications.
Awards show industry pushing holographic boundaries
The award winners at
Holopack Holoprint - 2009
Innovation in Holographic Technique
Award: Specialized Enterprise Holography for
Ivan Pulyui
Commended: Holostik India Ltd for Pisco Peru Plata
Innovation in Holographic Production and
OEM Product
Award: Holostik India Limited for its innovative holo-graphic
blister packaging
Commended: Optaglio s.r.o. for OVMesh™
Best Origination
Award: Hazen Paper Company for ‘Smooth Sailing with
Hazen Paper’ 2009 calendar
Best Applied Security Product
Award: JDSU for HoloFuse™
Commended: Holostik India Ltd for Vanali
Best Applied Decorative Product
Award: Opataglio for Platform Culture Central Europe
Commended: Wrestlemania 25th Anniversary Program
Booklet
Brian Monaghan Award for Business Innovation
Award: Dino Radice, Centro DG S.P.A
14
Review
15. www.homai.org
The Holography Times
Events & Calendar
5TH GLOBAL FORUM ON PHARMACEUTICAL
ANTI-COUNTERFEITING
10 - 26 February 2010, Miami, FL, USA
www.reconnaissance-intl.com
INDIA PACKAGING SHOW 2010
9-12 April 2010, HITEX, Hyderabad
www.indiapackagingshow.com
7TH PAN EUROPEAN HIGH SECURITY PRINTING
CONFERENCE
10 - 15 April 2010, Berlin, Germany
www.reconnaissance-intl.com
HOLO-PACK.HOLO-PRINT 2010
10 - 16 Nov 10, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
www.reconnaissance-intl.com
9TH ASIAN HIGH SECURITY PRINTING
CONFERENCE
10 - 19 Nov 10, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
www.reconnaissance-intl.com
Pack Plus 2010
3 - 6 December 2010, New Delhi
www.indiapackagingshow.com
Method for forming hologram,
hologram and security medium
using the hologram
Publication No: (WO/2010/005016)
Publication Date: 14-January-2010
International Application No:
PCT/JP2009/062419
Applicants: Dai Nippon Printing Co.,
Ltd. [JP/JP]; 1-1, Ichigaya-Kagacho 1-
chome, shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 1628001 (JP)
(All Except US).
Abstract:
(EN) A method for forming a hologram to
record an original image as an interference
pattern on a predetermined recording
surface by calculation carried out by a
computer comprises a step of defi ning
an original image comprised of a three-dimensional
image, a hologram recording
surface to record the original image, and
reference light to be irradiated to the
hologram recording surface; a step of
defi ning a plurality of calculation points
on the hologram recording surface and
calculates the strength of an interference
wave formed by object light emitted
from each object and the reference light
with respect of each of the calculation
points; and a step of forming a physical
interference pattern on a medium in
accordance with the strength distribution
of the interference wave obtained on the
recording surface in the calculation step,
thereby making the shortest portion of
the three-dimensional image arranged in
the vicinity of the hologram recording
surface in defi ning the original image.
Illumination device with
holographic light guide
Publication No: WO/2010/270100
Publication Date: 07-01-2010
International Application No:
PCT/US2009/048677
Applicants:
QUALCOMM MEMS
TECHNOLOGIES, INC. [US/US]; 5775
Morehouse Drive San Diego, CA 92121
(US) (All Except US).
GRUHLKE, Russell, Wayne [US/US];
(US) (US Only).
CHUI, Clarence [US/US]; (US) (US
Only).
MIENKO, Marek [US/US]; (US) (US
Only).
XU, Gang [US/US]; (US) (US Only).
BITA, Ion [RO/US]; (US) (US Only).
Abstract:
An illumination device includes a
holographic fi lm 89 and a light source
93, such as a point light source. The point
light source 93 is positioned at an edge
of the holographic fi lm and has a light
emitting face that faces the edge of the
holographic fi lm 89. The holographic
fi lm 89 includes a hologram formed of
diffractive refractive index structures. The
density of the diffractive refractive index
structur-es increases with increasing
distance from the light source 93. Light
is propagated from the light source 93
through the holographic fi lm 89, such as
by total internal refl ection. The diffractive
refractive index structures turn the light,
thereby causing the light to propagate out
of the holographic fi lm 89 in a desired
direction. In some embodiments, the
light propagating out of the holographic
fi lm 89 has a high uniformity across the
surface of the holographic fi lm 89.
Editorial Board
Neha Gupta, Editor in Chief
C S Jeena, Editor
The Holography Times is published by
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Disclaimer: The data used here are from various
published and electronically available primary and
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data may contain occasional errors. In such instances,
HoMAI would not be responsible for such errors.
Latest Patents
15
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