Short version: Two layers of a custom pixel pattern are either printed on two sides of a substrate, or printed on two layers of a laminate. With separation between the pixel layers, Fathom can generate an amazing effect. The thicker the substrate, the more dramatic the effect.

Long version: Fathom effects work through imprinting a dynamic graphic composed of digital light fields that replaces ‘optically-varying’ printed features. To produce this image, the Fathom technology encodes the 3-dimensional volume of an object on a 2-dimensional surface (ie, imprints a hologram) in a revolutionary manner. The Fathom system employs a complex computational approach that eliminates the need for 3D glasses (or similar devices), and computationally processes hundreds of billions of light rays to create a very large 3D virtual image that can be affixed on an extremely thin physical display.