Physicists from The Australian National University (ANU) have invented a device that creates what they say is the highest quality holographic image ever achieved, possibly opening the door to imaging technologies seen in movies such as Star Wars.

Lead researcher Lei Wang, a Ph.D student, says the team created complex holographic images in infrared with the device that could be developed with industry.

Concept artwork of the holographic image that was created with the ANU invention.Holograms perform some of the most complex manipulations of light by enabling the storing and reproduction of all information carried by light in 3-D. Standard photographs and computer monitors capture and display only a portion of 2-D information.

Co-lead researcher Sergey Kruk says the device consisted of millions of tiny silicon pillars, each up to 500 times thinner than a human hair.

The new material is transparent, which means it loses minimal energy from the light, and it also does complex manipulations with light, says Kruk.

According to researchers, the ability to structure materials at the nanoscale allows the device to achieve new optical properties that go beyond the properties of natural materials. The holograms demonstrate the potential of this technology to be used in a range of applications.

Part of the research was conducted in collaboration with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States and Nanjing University in China.