- New Optical Technique Could Cut Stock Costs by 10x or even more
- Optera Data’s disks could hit 10TB for just $ 1 – cheaper than tape!
- Low -power storage, high density has data centers in mind
A team led by Dr. Nicolas Riesen at the University of South Australia has come up with a new optical storage technology that could potentially cut suction storage costs with a factor of ten compared to current optical solutions.
As reported by Blocks and filesIs this method depending on manipulating fluorescence in wave bands in specific recording areas, enabling multi-bit storage that resembles Nand Flash technology.
The process involves selectively change fluorescence properties of nanoparticles in the admission media using laser energy to create “spectral holes” where the emission is reduced. This variation in light emission encodes data in multiple levels, which potentially enables the storage of high density. The nanoparticles, consisting of hexagonal silicon carbide (sic) crystals doped with vanadium, reportedly respond to laser exposure in ways affecting their light emission characteristics. These changes can be identified during the reading process so that data can be retrieved.
$ 1 per Terabytes
Founded by entrepreneur Geoff Macleod-Smith, Optera Data is currently working to commercialize technology. Startup foresees optical discs capable of storing high density, focusing on offline security and long -term data protection. Writing data will involve the setting of lasers to set spectral frequencies, while reading would rely on detecting fluorescence patterns.
A Whitepaper by Tom Coughlin, available to read on the Optera Data Page, projects that the total storage capacity shipments will grow five times between 2024 and 2029, with much of this data residing in secondary or archive storage. Traditional hard drives, tapes and other new optical solutions compete for this expanding market, where life and energy efficiency are primary factors.
Optera Data claims that once developed, the technology could achieve a total ownership costs as low as $ 1 per day. Terabytes, well below the expected costs for other storage media.
The company hopes to produce 1 TB disk in the short term with the ambitious goal of hitting 10 TB for $ 1 at the end of the decade. This price point would make it significantly cheaper than solutions from them as cerabytes, and it could even potentially undermine magnetic tape storage, which is expected to fall below $ 2.50 per day. Terabyte in 2029.
Unlike hard drives that require continuous power and magnetic tapes that depend on specialized library systems, Optera Data’s approach could be integrated with existing optical disk formats. This compatibility can help with the technology’s adoption in data centers, where reduction of energy consumption and storage costs is a major focus for hyperscalers right now.
The viability of technology, of course, depends on its ability to meet the requirements for storage density and compete with developing alternatives such as synthetic DNA storage that offer long-term stability but still a way to be ready for prime time.
