By studying the core holographic optical elements in the holographic plate waveguide display system, we prepare a reflective volume holographic grating with refractive index modulation on a holographic plate with quartz glass as substrate and dichromate gelatin as recording medium. The effects of different exposure intensity, refractive index modulation and water washing time on diffraction efficiency of grating are researched. Experimental results show that the diffraction efficiency of reflective volume holographic gratings can be improved by using 441.6 nm He-Cd laser light source and complex post-treatment process. The diffraction efficiency of reflective volume gratings can reach 61.8%. Under the condition of visible light incident, a remarkable light splitting effect is produced. The prepared holographic experimental sample can be transmitted by waveguide under the condition of total reflection, which provides a method to improve the diffraction efficiency of display devices such as head mounted display device and augmented reality during transmission.