Britannica Sources used in this answer

Why are pulsed lasers used to make holograms of moving objects?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

hologram graphic — holography Figure 1: Gabor's original method for creating holograms.

Pulsed lasers are used to create holograms of moving objects because they provide an extremely rapid and high-intensity flash of light, which effectively makes a moving object appear to be at rest during the exposure.1

While a continuous-wave laser requires long exposure times—making it unsuitable for subjects in motion—a pulsed laser can emit a pulse lasting less than 1/10,000,000 of a second. As long as the object does not move more than 1/10 of a wavelength of light during this brief interval, a usable hologram can be successfully obtained. This capability allows for the study of fast-moving objects and dynamic processes, such as chemical reactions or high-speed air flow in wind-tunnel experiments, while maintaining the same three-dimensional characteristics as holograms produced with continuous-wave sources.12