Breakthrough in Holographic TV development...

Going back a loooooong time ago, I was a physics major in college (that was before I hit the brick wall named "Calculus"), wanting to get into the field of Holography - specifically, R&D in Holographic Television. Unfortunately, I couldn't get a handle the math, so my university studies went in a different direction. But it was still my "first love" as a career choice and field of study.

Today, a report out of London reveals a major breakthrough in Holo-TV technology:

LONDON, England (CNN) -- Picture this: you're sat down for the Football World Cup final, or a long-awaited sequel to the "Sex and the City" movie and you're watching all the action unfold in 3-D on your coffee table.

It sounds a lot like a wacky dream, but don't be surprised if within our lifetime you find yourself discarding your plasma and LCD sets in exchange for a holographic 3-D television that can put Cristiano Ronaldo in your living room or bring you face-to-face with life-sized versions of your gaming heroes.

The reason for renewed optimism in three-dimensional technology is a breakthrough in rewritable and erasable holographic systems made earlier this year by researchers at the University of Arizona.

Dr Nasser Peyghambarian, chair of photonics and lasers at the university's Optical Sciences department, told CNN that scientists have broken a barrier by making the first updatable three-dimensional displays with memory.

The article continues:

Tung H. Jeong, a retired physics professor at Lake Forest College outside Chicago who had studied holography since the 1960s told NJ.com; "When we start talking about erasable and rewritable holograms, we are moving toward the possibility of holographic TV ... It has now been shown that physically, it's possible."

And what might these holographic televisions look like?

According to Peyghambarian, they could be constructed as a screen on the wall (like flat panel displays) that shows 3-D images, with all the image writing lasers behind the wall; or it could be like a horizontal panel on a table with holographic writing apparatus underneath.

So, if this project is realized, you really could have a football match on your coffee table, or horror-movie villains jumping out of your wall.

Peyghambarian is also optimistic that the technology could reach the market within five to ten years.

Dr. T. H. Jeong. Now there's a blast from the past. If I had been able to continue in physics, I would have gone to Lake Forest College for my Masters after getting my B.S. at Villanova. Who knows? I might even have been a member of the current team at U. of Arizona. Oh well... another life. At least it appears that I'll be able to see this technology within my lifetime.

Read the full article here.