ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the methods for exact ray tracing, paraxial imaging relations, and aberration analysis of holographic optical elements. The performance of a hologram in an optical system requires separate analysis of the imaging characteristics and the diffraction efficiency. The imaging characteristics are determined by the electromagnetic boundary matching conditions at the hologram interface with the surrounding medium. The set of ray intercept coordinates can then be used to generate a spot diagram for the hologram reconstruction configuration. Frequently, it is desired to reconstruct a non-distorted real image with a holographic lens. The holographic paraxial imaging relations can be used to determine the lateral, longitudinal, and angular magnification in optical systems that contain holographic optical elements and are very useful in the initial optical design process. An important problem in holography is to design a hologram for construction at one wavelength and to reconstruct it with good performance at a different wavelength.
