The way it works presently is not suitable for 3-D images , '' he said . The researchers produced displays that can be erased and rewritten in a matter of minutes . To create television sets the images would need to be changing multiple times each second -- but Peyghambarian is very optimistic this can happen . He said the University of Arizona team , which is now ten-strong , has been working on advancing hologram technology since 1990 -- so this is a major step forward . He believes that much of the difficulty in creating a holographic set has now been overcome . `` It took us a while to make that first breakthrough , but as soon as you have the first element of it working the rest often comes more rapidly , '' he said . `` What we are doing now is trying to make the model better . What we showed is just one color , what we are doing now is trying to use three colors . The original display was four inches by four inches and now we 're going for something at least as big as a computer screen . ''
LONDON , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Picture this : you 're sat down for the Football World Cup final , or a long-awaited sequel to the `` Sex and the City '' movie and you 're watching all the action unfold in 3-D on your coffee table . The future of television ? This image is an impression of what 3D holographic television may look like . It sounds a lot like a wacky dream , but do n't be surprised if within our lifetime you find yourself discarding your plasma and LCD sets in exchange for a holographic 3-D television that can put Cristiano Ronaldo in your living room or bring you face-to-face with life-sized versions of your gaming heroes . The reason for renewed optimism in three-dimensional technology is a breakthrough in rewritable and erasable holographic systems made earlier this year by researchers at the University of Arizona . Dr Nasser Peyghambarian , chair of photonics and lasers at the university 's Optical Sciences department , told CNN that scientists have broken a barrier by making the first updatable three-dimensional displays with memory . `` This is a prerequisite for any type of moving holographic technology .