Optical Trap Display Technology Under Development

A team of researchers led by Assistant Professor Daniel Smalley of the Electro-Holography Research Group within the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Brigham Young University (Provo, UT) is developing a means for “using light to print full color graphics into thin air.” Dr. Smalley has said their target was the famous holographic image of Princess Leia in Star Wars. They wanted to create a 3D image in space, that one could walk around and see from all angles. The researchers call the type of display technology that they have created a free space volumetric display. The device itself is