With so much media being solely digital these days, it would seem like optical discs are a thing of the past. Some scientists said, “Hold my beer.”
Making amazing innovations back in February 2024, scientists have developed an optical disc that can hold 1.6 petabits of data.
What is a Petabit?
First off, a little bit of context. What is a petabit? A petabit is a unit of data measurement equal to one quadrillion bits of data. Or 1,000 terabits, if that is an easier number to swallow. Better yet, in terabytes, 1Pb is equal to 125TB. Basically, it is a buttload. Actually, technically a buttload is 126 gallons of wine, but you get my point. It is a lot of data.
1.6 Petabit Optical Disc
The 1.6 petabit optical disc was developed by researchers at the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, and other Chinese institutes. Together, they improved upon the humble optical disc, enabling it to hold 1.6Pb of data. Roughly 200TB, for context. Presently, the largest hard drive holds 100TB, so this is game changing stuff.
Optical discs store data in layers. CDs, DVDs, and BluRays would have one, two, or four layers. This new technology has as many as 100 separated by one micrometer, with each layer sporting comparable write quality. This is made possible using an ultra-transparent film called Aggregation-Induced Emission Dye-Doped Photoresist, or AIE-DDPR. Data is written via dual lasers that blow past the optical diffraction limit. This is the smallest point an optical imaging system can resolve – and they go past that.
The dual laser timings are tightly controlled for reading and writing to the disc. Paired with the AIE-DDPR film, they can read and encode data from points roughly one-tenth the wavelength of visible light used in optics. We’ve gone from impossibly huge to impossibly small!
It’s been a ten-year long process finding the materials and methods to innovate the optical disc. But with the material performing so well at the nanoscale level, it is likely that these discs can be manufactured in roughly six minutes using similar processes to DVDs.
Are 1.6Pb optical discs the future?
Learn More About It with ColdFusion
The science-y minded folks at ColdFusion have taken a deeper look at this improved tech.
Optical Disc Readers
Perhaps it is time to dust off the optical disc readers! While many PC cases opt for stunning fans and RGB lighting on the front panel nowadays, you can thankfully purchase optical disc readers separately. They work with gaming laptops, too, which often forego the slimline DVD reader in an effort to shrink down the frame. If nothing else, it is the perfect excuse to dig out those old games on disc and enjoy them once more! I have a game with sixteen versions of solitaire that I miss daily somewhere…
We like to keep up with interesting tech innovations. Did you see the article about graphene proccessors?
What Do You Think?
Is the CD making a comeback? Let us know what you think of this innovation in the comments below.
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- 3 min read
Emily Haylock
Author
Emily is a board and cosy gamer, keyboard obsessive, and content copywriter for Overclockers UK. She has been with Overclockers UK since 2020, writing about everything from noblechairs to 8Pack PCs. She writes from within her desk nest with a foster pup at her feet. (What, a desk duvet is a totally normal thing!) In her downtime, she likes to play board games, farming sims, and old-school Final Fantasy. IX to be specific. It is the best, and that is a hill she will die on.
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