Planar holographic elements with uniform diffraction efficiency

A planar holographic lens is investigated for imaging applications. The design and recording of the holographic lens are based on a transference of wavefronts method, where a desired grating function, with low aberrations, is transferred from a thin hologram to one recorded in thick recording materials. The resulting thick, planar holographic lens fulfills the Bragg condition over a relatively large field of view. Experimental results, presented for planar holographic lenses recorded in photopolymers and dichromated gelatin materials, show that a high diffraction efficiency greater than 50% and uniform over a field of view of 16 degrees can be obtained.