Optics and Laser Laboratories (Electrical and Electronic Engineering Research Group)

University of Aberdeen has had an active and successful group researching optical engineering for the last thirty years and continues to contribute to what has become Optoelectronics - a rapidly growing hot-spot for academia and industry. An extensive set of lasers, photographic processing and hologram replay facilities are used for experiments ranging from the welding of dissimilar materials to volume sectioning using the world's largest dual orientation holographic camera. Hologram recording and analysis are done on special pneumatically isolated workbenches and image replay can be examined minutely with the aid of two high-precision XYZ micro-positioning stages. The laboratories were refurbished in 2013.

HOLOCAM
This two ton camera takes 3D underwater pictures and is featured in the 2002 Guinness Book of Records as the most advanced holographic underwater camera. HOLOCAM works at depths down to 100 meters and takes in situ recordings of marine organisms.

eHOLOCAM
This was a second-generation camera, developed from experience in design, implementation and testing of HOLOCAM. Significant advances were made to incorporate digital recording, replay and analysis. In addition, the eHoloCam is one sixth of the volume and one twentieth of the weight of the HoloMar camera. eHoloCam has been deployed in the North Sea and North Atlantic (Faroes Channel) from the RV Scotia, a research vessel owned by the Fisheries Research Services Marine Laboratory in Aberdeen. Over 290 digital holographic videos were recorded containing several thousand individual holograms of plankton and other marine organisms and particles. It has demonstrated the deepest (known) deployment of holography at 500 m below sea-level in the North Sea although designed to be deployed to 1.8 km.