News Cuneiform-like digital storage tech quadruples data storage — uses three levels of indentation in polymer film

[Admin]

Australian researchers create a new data storage technique that uses nanometer precision to store data in ternary format.

Cuneiform-like digital storage tech quadruples data storage — uses three levels of indentation in polymer film : Read more

 

[JRStern]

Um, isn't making a physical indentation going to be absurdly slow?

 

[USAFRet]

Um, isn't making a physical indentation going to be absurdly slow?

"There are still many challenges that face this new data storage technique,"

This is just a proof of concept. Speed and optimization comes much later.

 

[Jame5]

Just a reminder: SSDs are not a long term cold storage solution. They are meant to have continual refresh cycles otherwise they risk data loss.

Tapes are still probably the current champion for long term offline cold storage of data. And even they are only rated for 25-30 years.

 

[edzieba]

However, what makes this technology different is that the indent is made by a fine-tip probe, not by laser light.

CDs, DVD,s BDs (and CEDs and so on) also do not have their data tracks created by laser light: they are created by mechanical indentation too! Specifically, all are stamped from metal masters, akin to how vinyl records are - the difference is records are just stamped and then left as is, whilst the other media are then metallised after stamping and have an additional protective coating added on top.

CEDs in particular are an interesting comparison: no lasers involved, the read head runs mechanically into a groove on the disc. The difference is that instead of the entire head moving within the groove to read data, the head is larger than the changes in groove depth and runs 'over' the variations, and the variations are read capacitively. This is the same way Scanning Capacitance Microscopy works, akin to Atomic Force Microscopy but with the head being able to track sub-head-size features.

Basically, the researchers have created the CED-RW, just 40 years too late.

 

[Li Ken-un]

According to the report, an area with no indent is 0, while cuts that are 0.3 to 1.0 nanometer deep would indicate a 1. If the indent is 1.5 to 2.5 nanometers deep, then its value is 2.

This means that this polymer could store ternary code, essentially quadrupling its storage capacity versus systems that just use binary.

Yes, it is ternary.

No, it does not quadruple the storable capacity versus binary. A trit is equivalent to 1.58 bits, which is not even what MLC is to SLC for NAND.

 

[usertests]

Yes, it is ternary.

No, it does not quadruple the storable capacity versus binary. A trit is equivalent to 1.58 bits, which is not even what MLC is to SLC for NAND.

I thought I was going crazy for a second.

 

[husker]

If ternary was better, we'd be using ternary by now. That was settled during the mid twentieth century. Binary is the standard and will likely remain so for a whole host of reasons.


Bender: "Ahhh, what an awful dream. Ones and zeros everywhere… and I thought I saw a two!"
Fry: "It was just a dream, Bender. There’s no such thing as two."

 

[gaaah]

It just dawned on me, that I have several dozen CDs and DVDs backing up data and software from long ago. The thing is, I haven't owned a CD/DVD player for at least a decade.

 

[USAFRet]

It just dawned on me, that I have several dozen CDs and DVDs backing up data and software from long ago. The thing is, I haven't owned a CD/DVD player for at least a decade.

Exactly!

Obtain a $25 USB DVD drive, and see how many of those discs are unreadable.