Abstract: The invention relates to a system and method of analysing material as well as to an apparatus for analysing material, particularly, though not necessarily exclusively, biomaterial. The invention entails receiving holographic intensity data comprising at least a holographic intensity pattern associated with a sample of the material of interest and processing, by applying image processing algorithms and techniques, the received holographic intensity data at least to perform one or both steps of detecting and identifying at least one object of interest in the sample thereby at least to generate a suitable output.

Abstract: The invention relates to a hologram, or holographic intensity data, processing method and system. The system implements the method which comprises receiving holographic intensity data comprising at least a holographic intensity pattern or image at a discrete location in a propagation space, the propagation space comprising the three-dimensional space over which light waves or illumination forming the holographic intensity pattern propagates. The method comprises determining one or more data key-points of at least one potential object of interest (19) in the received holographic intensity data, and also comparing the determined one or more data key-points to at least one pre-determined propagation space invariant object descriptor associated with an object to determine a match in order to identify or detect the object and determine its location in the propagation space.