For decades, holograms have felt like something straight out of Star Wars or Iron Man—a dazzling technology reserved for science fiction. But a team of researchers at the University of St Andrews may have just taken a giant leap toward making them part of our everyday lives. Published in Light: Science and Applications, their new study reveals a simple yet powerful way to generate holograms using a combination of OLEDs (Organic Light-Emitting Diodes) and Holographic Metasurfaces (HMs). This innovation could shrink holographic displays down to a size small enough to fit inside your smartphone, while also making them cheaper and easier to produce.
Why This Matters:
Until now, creating holograms usually required bulky, expensive lasers—far from practical for consumer devices. The St Andrews approach eliminates that barrier by using OLEDs, which already power millions of smartphone and TV displays around the world. This means the same technology that lights up your screen could soon project holograms into the air. Think of:
- FaceTiming in 3D, where your friend appears as a holographic projection.
- Immersive AR/VR, no bulky headsets required.
- Next-gen gaming, where characters step into your living room.
- Medical and education tools, with 3D anatomy models or interactive holographic lessons.
The Science in Simple Terms:
An OLED is a thin, flat device that emits light across its entire surface. Pair it with a holographic metasurface—a layer of nanoscale “meta-atoms” thinner than a strand of hair—and you get something remarkable. Each tiny structure on the metasurface tweaks the light slightly, like millions of microscopic pixels working together. When combined, they create interference patterns that form a complete holographic image.
Professor Graham Turnbull explains it best:
“OLED displays normally need thousands of pixels to create a simple picture. This new approach allows a complete image to be projected from a single OLED pixel!” In other words, one light source can now project complex holograms.
Breaking Down Barriers:
Professor Andrea Di Falco, an expert in nano-photonics, highlighted the broader impact: “With this work, we’ve removed one of the technological barriers that prevented the adoption of metamaterials in everyday applications. This breakthrough will enable a step change in holographic displays for emerging applications, such as virtual and augmented reality.” That’s huge. Until now, OLEDs were limited to simple shapes. This advancement opens the door to miniaturized, highly integrated holographic displays that could slip into devices as small as a smartwatch—or even medical implants.
The Road Ahead:
Like all cutting-edge science, this is still in its early stages. But the promise is clear: a future where holograms are as common as touchscreens. The researchers believe this could pave the way not only for personal devices but also for innovations in data storage, anti-counterfeiting, sensing, and biophotonics. Imagine checking your notifications in mid-air, or projecting a 3D holographic movie right from your phone. The line between science fiction and reality just got a whole lot thinner. :Referrence Science and application-published in August-2025
