Testing your Holographic Media and Material

In addition to the accelerated life testing that is necessary to establish the durability of the holographic media, regular quality control checks need to be carried out during manufacturing, as with any storage media. Following a two-year period of collaboration, in 2006 InPhase and DaTARIUS Technologies GmbH announced agreements whereby DaTARIUS would be the sole sales, service, and support provider for a range of holographic media test equipment.

The two companies are also working together on the development of future holographic test systems, and the first of these systems are now available: Holography Material Tester - HMT-100 and  Holography Material Scatter-Tester - HMS-200

The DaTARIUS Holographic Material Tester and the Holographic Material Scatter-Tester are the first generation of holography QA solutions from the DaTARIUS Group, and have been developed by the DaTARIUS DOP team in close partnership with InPhase.

The HMT-100 is capable of recording and reading holograms in holographic material samples. “This sample testing is essential for holographic material suppliers like Bayer Material Science to determine the performance of their material,” says Dr Wlodek Mischke, Director of Research at DaTARIUS and Holography project leader. “Holographic media manufacturers need an acceptance test for their raw material, such as that used for holographic media.” The HMT’s principle is very straightforward: several holograms are recorded in the material, then the HMT reads out the holograms and evaluates the read-out quality.

The DaTARIUS HMS-200 is now in use at companies involved in holography; specifically, material producers, media manufacturers and drive producers. The Holographic Material Scatter-Tester is a system used for characterizing scattering properties of holographic media.