Most 3D printing still works the same way it did a decade ago: lay down one layer, then the next, then the next, until a part slowly stacks into existence. A team at EPFL in Switzerland just showed off a method that throws that whole idea out. Instead of building layer by layer, they grow a finished object all at once inside a spinning vial of resin, using nothing but carefully shaped light. And in a paper published June 20, 2026, they reported making the process about 70 times more efficient than earlier versions of the same approach.
If you have not run into volumetric printing before, this is a good moment to catch up, because it points at where on-demand parts could be headed.
What volumetric printing actually is
The technique is called tomographic volumetric additive manufacturing, or TVAM. The easiest way to picture it is a CT scan running in reverse. A medical CT scanner shoots X-rays through your body from many angles to build a 3D image. TVAM does the opposite: it projects patterns of light into a rotating container of light-sensitive resin from many angles, and wherever enough light energy piles up in the same spot, the liquid hardens into solid plastic. The shape forms in the volume of the liquid, not on a build plate, so there are no layers and no support structures.
The payoff is speed. The EPFL researchers solidified millimeter-scale objects in a few seconds and centimeter-scale objects in minutes. There is no nozzle dragging back and forth, no recoating step, no peeling a part off a plate.
Why the EPFL update matters
The catch with TVAM has always been efficiency. Earlier holographic versions wasted most of the light, running at single-digit percentages of optical efficiency. EPFL's Laboratory of Applied Photonic Devices, led by Christophe Moser, built a new setup around a phase light modulator, a device that directly controls the phase of the laser beam rather than just dimming parts of it. By steering the light instead of throwing a lot of it away, they hit roughly 24 percent optical efficiency, which is where that 70x figure comes from. The work was published in the journal Light: Science & Applications.
There is a second trick worth calling out. The phase control lets the system use what the researchers describe as self-healing beams, which can push through cloudy, light-scattering material and still form a clean shape. That is a big deal for the application they are chasing: printing tissue-like structures with living cells suspended in the resin. They used a modest 150-milliwatt laser diode to print a life-sized human ear as a step toward bioprinted implants. As Moser put it, the method makes it possible to "bioprint tissue-like structures at near-clinical scale," printing parts larger than previous holographic approaches managed even with cells getting in the way of the light.
What this means for makers
Let's be honest about where this sits. TVAM is a lab process right now, not something shipping on a desktop printer. The resins are specialized, the optics are expensive, and the parts are small. You are not going to retire your FDM machine because of this.
But the direction is the interesting part. Printing an entire object at once, with no supports and no layer lines, is the holy grail a lot of people have chased for years. Smooth surfaces straight off the printer, geometries that would be a nightmare to support, and print times measured in seconds rather than hours. Even if only pieces of this trickle down into mainstream resin printers, makers stand to benefit from faster cycles and cleaner prints.
What this means for engineering buyers
If you spec parts for a living, the headline here is not the ear. It is the idea that additive manufacturing keeps finding ways to make production faster and more material-efficient. Volumetric methods could eventually be a strong fit for small, intricate polymer components made in batches, especially in medical and microfluidics work where surface finish and fine features matter.
The honest near-term answer, though, is that proven processes still build the parts you can order today. When you need a functional prototype next week or a run of end-use components, that work runs on mature technology like industrial FDM and high-temp polymers. At DC Additive Pros we keep an eye on the frontier so we can tell you what is real and what is still a lab demo, then build your part on the process that actually fits it. If you have a project and want a straight answer on the right approach, our build and ship service is the place to start, and for demanding parts our PEEK and ULTEM printing service covers the high-temp end.
The bigger picture
News like this is a useful reminder that 3D printing is not one technology, it is a whole family of them, each climbing its own curve. Light-based volumetric printing is sprinting forward in research labs while filament and powder processes keep getting cheaper and more reliable on the factory floor. The shops that win are the ones who match the job to the right tool instead of forcing every part through the same machine.
We work with US-based makers, engineers, and product teams to do exactly that, including reverse-engineering and scanning parts that no longer have drawings. If you want to see how we approach it, take a look at our 3D scanning and reverse engineering service.
And a quick note for brands: we review 3D printing gear, filaments, and tools, and we are always happy to put new products through their paces. If you make something in this space and want an honest look, reach out at info@dcadditivepros.com.