(November 24, 2015) The
team, led by Alexander Vinogradov, senior research associate at the
International Laboratory of Solution Chemistry of Advanced Materials and
Technologies (SCAMT) of ITMO University, developed colorless ink made of
nanocrystalline titania, which can be loaded into an inkjet printer and then
deposited on special microembossed paper, resulting in unique patterned images.
The ink makes it possible to print custom holographic images on transparent
film in a matter of minutes, instead of days as with the use of conventional
methods.
Rainbow holograms are widely used to fight against the
forgery of credit cards, money, documents and certain manufactured products
that call for a high level of protection. Even though the technology of
obtaining holographic images was already developed in the 1960s, there still
exist numerous technical difficulties that impede its further spread and
integration into polygraphic industry.