Analogy between Holography and Interferometric Image Formation*

An analogy is drawn between holographic imaging with coherent light and interferometric imaging with incoherent light. By means of a spatially offset incoherent reference source, the amplitude and phase of the complex coherence factor of an incoherent object may be encoded as amplitude and phase modulations of a function derived from classical visibility measurements. This imaging technique shares several properties with holography, including the ability to image through a distorting medium and the ability to form three-dimensional images.