Atomic-scale memory can store 500 times more than today’s best hard drive
Dutch researchers have discovered a method of storing atom-sized bits on copper with a density of 500 Terabits per square inch (Tbpsi) -- 500 times more dense than the best commercial hard disk currently available.
"In theory, this storage density would allow all books ever created by humans to be written on a single post stamp," lead scientist Sander Otte said in a statement.
The research, published today in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, details how the scientists were able to construct a 1-kilobyte (8,000-bit) memory unit where each bit was represented by the position of one single chlorine atom on a copper surface. Researchers have been experimenting with atomic- and molecular-sized storage since the 1990s. Most recently, Microsoft and the University of Washington (UW) said they broke a world record by storing 200MB of data on synthetic DNA strands.
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