Investigation of faithful reconstruction in nonparaxial approximation polarization holography

Faithful reconstruction, the polarization state of the diffraction wave being identical to that of the signal wave, is the primary target in polarization holography. With the large crossing angle between signal and reference wave, namely, nonparaxial approximation, attaining a balance between intensity and polarization grating is generally known as a prerequisite for faithful reconstruction. However, obtaining such a balance point within polarization-sensitive material has long been known as a challenging job, due to its extremely strict exposure condition. In this paper, we report on a smart method with the well-designed reference and reading wave to faithfully reconstruct the signal wave at an arbitrary exposure energy. Moreover, when the signal is circularly polarized, the diffraction efficiency can be precisely manipulated by changing the reading wave’s polarization state, which is favorable for optical storage and functional diffractive optical elements.