Holograms: still the preserve of science fiction

The fragile apparition endured only long enough to say: "Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope" before flickering out. But R2D2's 3D projection gave millions of young eyes, including mine, their first taste of holograms, and planted unrealistic expectations of a future playing dejarik, the gruesome game of holographic chess played on board the Millennium Falcon. The concept of the hologram was already familiar, invented in the 1940s by physicist Dennis Gabor, but since the force reawakened the idea almost 40 years later, things haven't really moved on. That depends on your definition of a hologram. We have made astounding strides in 3D TV and virtual reality, and in the eye-twistingly complex world of computer-generated holography (CGH) – simply put, a way of recording and reproducing 3D images on a medium like standard images on film.