Work

Spatiotemporal plasma hologram

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Holography enables simultaneous recording, storage, and processing of both amplitude and phase information in optical fields, making it a versatile technique with broad applications across multiple disciplines. However, current holographic techniques still lack the ability to capture temporal information. Here, based on plasma grating generated by spatially varying ionization, we experimentally realize a spatiotemporal volume hologram, enabling femtosecond-resolved recording, storage, and retrieval of both spatial and temporal information from an object pulse. Using two complementary probing schemes—multi-shot scanning with a focused probe and single-shot imaging with an expanded probe—we reliably reconstruct complex spatiotemporal structures, including Gaussian and Laguerre–Gaussian beams. The scheme’s robustness has been thoroughly characterized by investigating the operational intensity range of the object pulse and hologram lifetime. These results create possibilities for ultrafast optical memory devices and real-time signal processors, potentially enabling applications in high-speed optical communications and analog computing.

Source: Optica

DOI: 10.1364/optica.583469