hologram

[ hol-uh-gram, hoh-luh- ]

noun

, Optics.

1. a negative produced by exposing a high-resolution photographic plate, without camera or lens, near a subject illuminated by monochromatic, coherent radiation, as from a laser: when it is placed in a beam of coherent light a true three-dimensional image of the subject is formed.

hologram

/ ˈhɒləˌɡræm /

noun

1. a photographic record produced by illuminating the object with coherent light (as from a laser) and, without using lenses, exposing a film to light reflected from this object and to a direct beam of coherent light. When interference patterns on the film are illuminated by the coherent light a three-dimensional image is produced

hologram

/ hŏl′ə-grăm′,hō′lə- /

1. A three-dimensional image of an object made by holography.

Word History and Origins

Origin of hologram¹

First recorded in 1945–50; holo- + -gram ¹

A Closer Look

To produce a simple hologram, a beam of coherent, monochromatic light, such as that produced by a laser, is split into two beams. One part, the object or illumination beam, is directed onto the object and reflected onto a high-resolution photographic plate. The other part, the reference beam, is beamed directly onto the photographic plate. The interference pattern of the two light beams is recorded on the plate. When the developed hologram is illuminated from behind (in the same direction as the original reference beam) by a beam of coherent light, it projects a three-dimensional image of the original object in space, shifting in perspective when viewed from different angles. Appropriately enough, the word hologram comes from the Greek words holos, “whole,” and gramma, “message.” If a hologram is cut into pieces, each piece projects the entire image, but as if viewed from a smaller subset of angles. The large amount of information contained in holograms makes them harder to forge than two-dimensional images. Many credit cards, CDs, sports memorabilia, and other items include holographic stickers as indicators of authenticity. Holography is used in many fields, including medicine, data storage, architecture, engineering, and the arts.

Example Sentences

The other people’s avatars have clear indicators of their digital nature, whether it’s a generally cartoony appearance or a vaguely translucent nature consistent with what pop culture often presents as a hologram.

From Popular-Science

We are probably several years away from tuxedoed holograms materializing tableside to suggest wine pairings, but when it happens, I won’t be surprised.

From Washington Post

The hologram was reportedly created using a combination of existing audio and video footage and artificial intelligence.

From Essence.com

The rapper and producer gifted Kim Kardashian West with a “lifelike” 3-D hologram of her late father Robert Kardashian her fortieth birthday.

From Essence.com

Tom Cruise’s John Anderton walks into the Gap, an identity recognition system scans him, and a hologram asks about a recent purchase.

From MIT Technology Review

And if not the Holometer, maybe another experiment in the future can tell us if we live in a hologram or not.

From The Daily Beast

“Oh my god, you were made for a hologram,” he remembers thinking of the quiet artist.

From The Daily Beast

The science behind a hologram is mind-bending for the uninitiated.

From The Daily Beast

What would Hologram Jesus tell this group of conservative Republicans?

From The Daily Beast

In the end the interview left us with more questions than it answered: Why a hologram?

From The Daily Beast

The idea of a hologram serves as a way of understanding self and other.

From Project Gutenberg

Pri-bram offers us an interesting view on relationships in his discussion of hologram.

From Project Gutenberg