Barclay appears as a guest character in "Voyager". His first appearance is in the third episode of the second season, "", although this is as a holographic character. In this episode, it is claimed that Barclay worked with Dr. Lewis Zimmerman to develop the EMH doctor program, although since Barclay's appearance is actually caused by a holographic breakdown this may not actually be the case. Working on Starfleet's "" project, Barclay becomes obsessed with the crew of the lost USS "Voyager", which has been stranded in the Delta Quadrant for over five years. He once again creates simulacra on a holodeck, this time of the "Voyager" crew, but based on facts available to him about their true personalities (for the most part; because he named his cat Neelix, he makes the holodeck Neelix purr). With the help of these holograms and Deanna Troi—with whom he has developed a close friendship—he devises a method to use a micro-wormhole to establish two-way communication with "Voyager". This plan is initially shot down, but Barclay defies direct orders and breaks into the laboratories, ultimately making successful contact with the real "Voyager". During this incident, Barclay also works through his relapse into holo-addiction; as he reveals to Deanna, he'd lost his "family" after leaving the "Enterprise" and did not know how to cope except with fake people. Barclay's work on the Pathfinder project earns him a promotion to full lieutenant (previously he had been a lieutenant junior grade). In the episode , it is also revealed the Barclay has made a further breakthrough that uses the monthly rotation of a Cyclic Pulsar Amplifier to establish Starfleet-Voyager communication. This is very fortuitous as we learn that Lewis Zimmerman, the creator of the Doctor's Emergency Medical Hologram program, is dying and no Starfleet medical personnel can determine the reason. Next month, the Voyager's EMH Doctor is sent to Zimmerman's Laboratory using Pathfinder, and with some scheming by Barclay, Deanna and Zimmerman's holographic female servant, Haley, the Doctor cures his creator after some earlier difficulties. Weirdly in the intro Zimmerman says that this will be the "First Intergalactic Phone Call" revealing he is not aware of the previous successful contact. During this period (""), a hologram of him is sent to "Voyager" to help them find a way home, but the hologram was altered by Ferengi trying to acquire Seven of Nine's Borg nanoprobes by convincing the crew to attempt a method of return that would have destroyed all organic matter on the ship.