Abstract

Persistent spectral hole burning (PSHB) [1] allows for frequency selective recording of holograms and opens interesting prospects for high density optical information storage and processing. When hole burning is performed with the interference pattern of two crossed laser beams a spectrally narrow hole is created in an inhomogeneously broadened absorption band and simultaneously the spatial fringe pattern is recorded as a modulation of the hole depth. During reconstruction of the hologram diffraction from this spatial fringe pattern occurs, reflecting the changes of the absorption coefficient and the refractive index introduced by the spectral hole [2].

© 1992 Optical Society of America