Scientists have created the world’s best and biggest 3D living hologram
Scientists, and society at large, have been waiting for holograms technology to appear on the market for decades, and while you'll still have to wait before you can buy one in the shops we're starting to edge closer to realising the dream.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2018) 'Scientists have created the world’s best and biggest 3D living hologram', 311 Institute, 27 January. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/scientists-have-created-the-worlds-best-and-biggest-3d-living-hologram/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Science fiction movies, like Avatar, Iron Man, Prometheus and, most famously Star Wars, almost always include 3D holograms that you can see from any angle, but so far, in today’s world, the reality, other than a breakthrough last year that created floating 3D plasma holograms you could touch using femtolasers has been much less exciting. Until now that it is.
Here’s the thing though… do you remember the Princess Leia hologram from Star Wars? Of course you do, well, apparently, according to scientists, it’s not a hologram at all, it’s something called a Volumetric Image, but all that aside now a team of researchers from Brigham Young University (BYU) in the USA have managed to recreate the hologram, er, volumetric image and the results, that you can see below in the video, are staggering.
The Holograms In Action
"We can think about this image like a 3D printed object," said BYU assistant prof and lead author Daniel Smalley.
The team used something called an "Optical Trap Display" to create their volumetric images. The difficulty with holograms so far is that you need something to reflect the laser light so your eyes can see it. BYU's device uses lasers to trap a tiny particle in free space, or as we call it, the air, that can force it to move in a path, much like how electromagnets deflect the electron beam in a CRT television, then other blue, red and green lasers illuminate it. And if the particle moves fast enough, it creates the illusion of a solid, animated holographic image. Heck, let’s just call it a hologram, after all that’s what it is… even if that isn’t the right scientific term for it.
"A single point was dragged sequentially through all these image points, and as it did, it scattered light," said Smalley, “and the accumulated effect of all that scattering and moving was to create this 3D image in space that is visible from all angles."
FAQ
Why does this matter?
Scientists, and society at large, have been waiting for holograms technology to appear on the market for decades, and while you'll still have to wait before you can buy one in the shops we're starting to edge closer to realising the dream.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
Read full bio
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.
What future do you need to see?
Choose one to get started on virtual worlds and the future of your organisation.
Sources and further reading
- Brigham Young University byu.edu
Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 27 January 2018. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2018). Scientists have created the world’s best and biggest 3D living hologram. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/scientists-have-created-the-worlds-best-and-biggest-3d-living-hologram/
You are welcome to quote this article with credit and a link to the original.