Back in 2015, the world, led by UNESCO, celebrated The International Year of Light. But did you know that since then, UNESCO has developed an International DAY of Light? Each year on May 16, scientists and the public will reflect upon and appreciate the ways in which light has played a key part in a number of fields, including science, art, medicine, and education. This month, to honor this new International Day of Light, we’re sharing with you some images of physicists and optical scientists who developed and worked in the field of holography, which uses interference patterns of beams of light to produce 3D images, known as holograms. To view one of the largest collection of holograms, consider a trip to Cambridge, Massachusetts to the MIT Museum – I visited a few months ago and highly recommend it!
Juris Upatnieks and Emmett Leith, who worked in holography, with equipment used in 3D photography.
Dennis Gabor, physicist, engineer, and inventor of holography, stands next to a holographic portrait of himself the year he won the Nobel Prize in Physics - 1971.
McDonnell Douglas Electrics Company Photo Lab, courtesy AIP Emilio Segrè Visual Archives *Catalog ID*: Gabor Dennis B2
Yuri Denisyuk, who worked in optics and reflection holograms, taking a photograph in his Laboratory of Scientific Holography at the Vavilov State Optical Institute. *
A view of interference fringes produced by heated gas inside an automobile dome lamp; the image from which this view was created was a 3D image produced by a laser hologram.
Portrait of Gabriel Lippmann, physicist and Nobel Laureate, who created the first color photos using the phenomenon of interference. His work led the way to the development of the modern holograph.
AIP Emilio Segrè Visual Archives *Catalog ID*: Lippmann Gabriel A1
Charles Townes, inventor of lasers; Alfred Kastley; Mary Warga, the OSA’s first employee; Luis Alvarez; Gerhard Herzberg; Dennis Gabor; and Arthur Shawlow at an OSA ceremonial session in 1972.
Optical Society of America, courtesy AIP Emilio Segrè Visual Archives *Catalog ID*: Townes Charles D1
In 1979, Lubkin traveled to China to report on the state of physics innovation post-Cultural Revolution. Archives Fellow Dorothy Tang takes a deep dive into the Lubkin papers to understand the details and impact of this trip.
Chemical engineer Paula Hammond, biomedical engineer Anjelica Gonzalez, and physicist Shirley Ann Jackson, describe their best accomplishments in oral history interviews.
Inside certain quantum systems, where randomness was thought to lurk, researchers—after a 40-year journey—have found order and unique wave patterns that stubbornly survive.
April 02, 2026 12:26 PM
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