Reconstruction of Negative Images in Holography

Abstract

A negative image is not, in general, reconstructed from a hologram. This paper reports that a negative image has, however, been reconstructed from both a direct transmission hologram and an image hologram produced under such particular conditions that the signal beam is more intense than the reference beam and that the photographic film is overexposed. The negative image reconstructed from an image hologram is better in quality than that reconstructed from a direct transmission hologram. These reconstructed images are not completely negative; the degree of completeness depends on both the intensity ratio of signal beam to reference beam and the extent of overexposure. Such negative image reconstructions in holography apparently resemble the solarization or the Sabattier effect in conventional photography.