English

Scientists use tiny nitrogen defects in the atomic structure of diamonds as "color centers" to write data for storage

223
2023-12-07 14:21:14
See translation

Scientists at the City University of New York use tiny nitrogen defects in the atomic structure of diamonds as "color centers" to write data for storage. This technology is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology and allows for encoding multiple bytes of data into the same nitrogen defect at multiple optical frequencies, without confusing the information content.

The common laser based techniques used for engraving/flipping information bits often encounter the so-called diffraction limit, which is the minimum area that the laser beam can focus on. In fact, this is also part of the reason why blue light technology does use blue laser technology: the wavelength of blue light is shorter than that of red light, so more information can be written in the same space. Due to the thinner blue lines, you can print four of them in the same space as the two red lines, automatically increasing the storage density per unit area.

However, what scientists have shown goes far beyond that. They demonstrated how to print in multiple colors within the same nitrogen defect, which means you can build as many bits from atoms as colors you can program separately.

"This means that we can store different information in different atoms of the same microscopic spot by using lasers with slightly different colors, thereby storing many different images in the same position on the diamond," said Tom Delord, a postdoctoral researcher at CCNY and co-author of the study. If this method can be applied to other materials or at room temperature, it may find its own way in computing applications that require high-capacity storage.

Perhaps the best way is to imagine a glass filled with water, where each color channel of the laser will drop a small piece of red, blue, or green ink into the available space. Different colors mean they have different densities, and the contents of green droplets can be separated from those of red droplets. Each color you have increases the amount of information encoded in the system - as long as you can separate different frequencies/densities when you want to read/extract content. Impressively, all these information layers can occupy the same physical space, thereby increasing storage density without interfering with each other.

"What we are doing is using narrowband lasers and low-temperature conditions to precisely control the charge of these color centers," Delord added. This new method enables us to write and read small amounts of data at a finer level than before, accurate to individual atoms.

The researchers demonstrated how their technology can print 12 different images within the same nitrogen defect, achieving a data density of 25GB per square inch. This is approximately equivalent to the 25GB of information that the entire Blu ray disc can hold in a single layer with a diameter of 12 centimeters.

In addition, this technology is non-destructive: information is not carved, but encoded into precisely charged atoms - within precisely defined nitrogen defects within the atoms. This is like lighting up small bubbles in a diamond. Then, information can be extracted from these illuminated bubbles, read, extracted, and re encoded over and over again. Diamonds seem to be eternal.

"By adjusting the beam to a slightly offset wavelength, it can remain in the same physical position but interact with different color centers to selectively change their charge - i.e. write data at sub diffraction resolution," said Monge, a postdoctoral researcher and Dr. CCNY involved in this study.

In theory, the use of diamond storage technology can guide us on a path where diamonds truly become people's best friends: personal treasures passed down from generation to generation, secret information encoded in tiny beams of light. A portable information storage medium used for providing and/or trading information during marriage.

For this technology, this is still a long way off, but the team believes they can eliminate the required low-temperature cooling when operating these color centers. They believe that their technology can one day be implemented at room temperature and can one day increase storage capacity at lower energy costs.

Source: Laser Net

Related Recommendations
  • Widely tunable terahertz laser enhances photo induced superconductivity in K3C60

    Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Material Structure and Dynamics (MPSD) in Hamburg, Germany, have long been exploring the effect of using custom laser drivers to manipulate the properties of quantum materials to deviate from equilibrium states.One of the most eye-catching demonstrations of these physics is unconventional superconductors, where enhanced electron coherence and super trans...

    2023-10-13
    See translation
  • The University of California has developed a pioneering chip that can simultaneously carry lasers and photonic waveguides

    A team of computer and electrical engineers at UC Santa Barbara, in collaboration with several colleagues at Caltech and another colleague at Anello Photonics, has developed a first-of-its-kind chip that can carry both laser and photonic waveguides. In a paper published in the journal Nature, the team describes how they made the chip and how it worked during testing.With the advent of integrated c...

    2023-08-10
    See translation
  • 330 million US dollars! This laser ophthalmic treatment developer has been acquired

    Recently, according to a report submitted by BioLight to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, Swiss American pharmaceutical and medical device giant Alcon Pharmaceuticals is acquiring Israeli medical technology company Belkin Vision.It is reported that BioLight will sell its 4% stake in Belkin Vision, which may be worth up to $330 million based on the milestones established in the transaction.Belkin Visio...

    2024-05-06
    See translation
  • Aston University is the first to adopt innovative laser detection technology using MEMS mirrors

    The School of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Aston University, located in Birmingham, UK, is at the forefront of exploring innovative laser detection methods and turbulence simulation. The plan revolves around the utilization of micro electromechanical mirrors, which have had a significant impact on various scientific fields over the past two decades.MEMS reflectors have gained widespread re...

    2024-03-07
    See translation
  • Fiber laser and deburring machine have improved the production efficiency and manufacturing capability of MITS Alloy

    The heavy-duty aluminum Ute tray and roof series of MITS Alloy have been greatly welcomed and demanded.The company is headquartered in Newcastle and was founded by Tim Lightfoot and Tony Brooks in January 2015. Tim's existing business, Safety MITS, provides maintenance equipment for mining, earthwork transportation, transportation, and related industries. They jointly determined that the four-whee...

    2024-05-15
    See translation