Optoelectronics Breakthrough Could Bring Holograms to Your Smartphone

Published on Quantum Server Networks

Optoelectronics hologram research

Imagine watching a 3D holographic projection directly from your smartphone—no bulky headsets, no special glasses. Thanks to new research in optoelectronics from the University of St Andrews, this futuristic vision may soon become reality. Scientists have combined organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) with holographic metasurfaces (HMs) to create the basic building blocks of a holographic display, opening the door to holograms in everyday consumer devices.

As reported by Phys.org and published in Light: Science & Applications, this innovation could transform how we interact with digital technology, with applications spanning communications, gaming, entertainment, and augmented/virtual reality.

From Lasers to OLEDs: A New Approach

Traditionally, creating holograms has required lasers and complex optical setups, making them impractical for mass-market devices. The St Andrews team overcame this barrier by integrating OLEDs—already ubiquitous in phone and TV displays—with metasurfaces. The result is a compact, scalable, and potentially cost-effective way to generate holograms.

OLEDs are flat, thin-film light sources widely used in modern electronics. They are ideal for integration because of their ability to emit light across a surface and their compatibility with flexible substrates. Metasurfaces, meanwhile, are ultra-thin arrays of nanoscale structures (meta-atoms) that precisely control the phase, polarization, and amplitude of light.

How Holographic Metasurfaces Work

Each meta-atom in the metasurface acts as a pixel that slightly modifies incoming light. When arranged collectively, they shape light into intricate interference patterns, forming a holographic image. By pairing OLEDs with metasurfaces, the researchers have created a device capable of projecting full holographic images from just a single OLED pixel—a major simplification compared to traditional display systems that require thousands of pixels.

Professor Ifor Samuel, a co-author of the study, explained: “By combining OLEDs with metasurfaces, we open a new way of generating holograms and shaping light.” His colleague, Professor Andrea Di Falco, emphasized that this approach removes a major technological barrier to everyday holographic applications, from next-generation AR displays to anti-counterfeiting measures.

Potential Applications

The breakthrough holds promise far beyond consumer smartphones:

  • Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR): More immersive, lightweight, and compact devices without bulky optics.
  • Medical Imaging: Real-time holographic visualization of scans and diagnostics.
  • Communication: 3D holographic video calls could become a reality.
  • Security and Anti-counterfeiting: Holographic tags that are harder to forge.

Professor Graham Turnbull highlighted the significance: “OLED displays normally need thousands of pixels to create a picture. This new approach allows a complete image to be projected from a single OLED pixel.”

A Step Toward Everyday Holograms

Until now, OLED-based holograms were limited to simple shapes. This advance marks a step-change, enabling miniaturized, integrated holographic metasurface displays. The research provides a blueprint for compact, affordable devices capable of holographic projection—bringing the dream of pocket-sized holographic displays closer than ever.

Source: University of St Andrews, School of Physics and Astronomy. Original article available at Phys.org: https://phys.org/news/2025-08-optoelectronics-holograms-smartphone-closer-everyday.html

This blog article was prepared with the assistance of AI technologies to support science communication.

Sponsored by PWmat (Lonxun Quantum) – a pioneer in GPU-accelerated materials simulation software for next-generation quantum, energy, and semiconductor research. Learn more at: https://www.pwmat.com/en

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#Holograms #Optoelectronics #OLED #Metasurfaces #Nanophotonics #QuantumServerNetworks #VirtualReality #AugmentedReality #NextGenDisplays #Photonics

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