Comparison of two-, three-, and four-exposure quadrature phase-shifting holography.

In standard (four-exposure) quadrature phase-shifting holography (QPSH), two holograms and two intensity maps are acquired for zero-order-free and twin-image-free reconstruction. The measurement of the intensity map of the object light can be omitted in three-exposure QPSH. Furthermore, the measurements of the two intensity maps can be omitted in two-exposure QPSH, and the acquisition time of the overall holographic recording process is reduced.