Holographic disc storage might not have worked out so well for InPhase , however the folks at General Electric are still looking to make HVD work. Their latest breakthrough, shown off today at an IEEE symposium in Hawaii, is a brand new micro-holographic material that’s 100x more sensitive than its predecessor and ups recording speed to that of Blu-ray discs. Inside the two years since we saw it last probably the most hyperbole has apparently been lost — no claims of “two to four years left for Blu-ray” this time around — but manager Peter Lorraine still thinks the DVD-sized discs have a future in archival and consumer systems. That’s getting tougher to visualize in an international with FiOS and Netflix streaming, but when there’s ever another disc format you’ll be observing it promptly.
GE Breakthrough in Micro-holographic Storage Technology Supports 500-Gigabyte Disc at Blu-ray Speed
Higher recording speed paving how to commercializing GE’s technology
GE’s micro-holographic material can support on one disc an identical storage capacity as 20 standard Blu-ray discs
NISKAYUNA, Manhattan, July 20, 2011 – GE Global Research, the technology development arm of the overall Electric Company (NYSE: GE), today announced another major breakthrough within the development of next generation optical storage technology. GE’s research team has successfully demonstrated a micro-holographic material that could support data recording on the same speed as Blu-ray discs. This result builds upon the April 2009 demonstration of a threshold micro-holographic storage material that could support 500 gigabytes of storage capacity in an average DVD-size disc.
Peter Lorraine, Manager of the Applied Optics Lab at GE Global Research, will discuss the breakthrough during a presentation today on the IEEE’s Joint International Symposium on Optical Memory & Optical Data Storage Topical Meeting (ISOM/ODS) being held in Lihue, Kauai, Hawaii. The ISOM/ODS brings together the world’s foremost experts in optical memory and knowledge storage technologies. GE’s breakthrough in recording speed, along side other technical improvements which were remodeled the past two years has micro-holographic technology more poised than ever for commercialization.
“In past times two years, our research team was taken with material improvements to extend the recording speed and making other key advances had to ready GE’s micro-holographic technology for market,” said Lorraine. “With a speed to check Blu-ray’s, discs product of GE’s advanced micro-holographic materials are a gorgeous solution for both archival and consumer entertainment systems.”
With higher recording speeds required inside the professional archival industry, the newest breakthrough by GE researchers will advance the company’s interests in commercializing GE’s micro-holographic technology during this market space.
Lorraine also noted that the breakthrough in recording speed could hasten the entry of GE’s micro-holographic technology into the shopper electronics market. Future micro-holographic discs using GE’s proprietary material will read and record on systems much like a regular Blu-ray or DVD player. Really, the hardware and formats will also be so just like current optical storage technologies that future micro-holographic players will enable consumers to play back their CDs, DVDs and BDs.
Inside the months ahead, GE’s research and licensing teams could be sampling media to qualified companies thinking about licensing its proprietary holographic data storage platform, a comprehensive portfolio featuring materials, discs, optical systems for manufacturing and optical drive technologies.
“This latest breakthrough in Holographic Data Storage represents a vital leap forward at the route to commercializing this technology,” said William Kernick, Vice chairman of Technology Ventures for GE. “We’re eager for engaging with strategic industry partners to create an exhilarating new solution in the stores.”
About Holographic Storage
Holographic storage isn’t like today’s optical storage formats like DVDs and Blu-ray discs. DVDs and Blu-ray discs store information only on as much as four layers on the surface of the disc; holographic storage technology uses the complete volume of the disc material. Holograms, or three-dimensional patterns that represent bits of knowledge, are written into the disc at controlled depths, and might then be read out. Because micro-holographic discs can use your entire volume of the fabric, their storage capacity is way more than existing storage technologies today. GE’s breakthrough material, when utilized in a disc, will match the capacity of 20 single-layer Blu-ray discs, 100 DVDs or the harddrive of most laptop computers.
GE was engaged on holographic storage technology for over eight years. The demonstration of fabrics that could support 500 gigabytes of capacity and recording at speeds matching today’s existing storage technologies are both major milestones. These achievements has been made throughout the collaborative efforts of a cross-functional team of scientists and engineers from the Applied Optics and Functional Materials labs. Ultimately, the team is operating toward micro-holographic discs that may store multiple terabyte, or 1,000 gigabytes of information.
While GE is initially all in favour of the economic archival industry, recent advancements have its micro-holographic storage technology poised to hit the patron market. GE’s route to market would be to license its technology through multiple partners within the consumer electronics supply chain. GE’s Technology Ventures Group is actively exploring potential technology transfer and licensing opportunities.
About GE Global Research
GE Global Research is the hub of technology development for all of GE’s businesses. Our scientists and engineers redefine what’s possible, drive growth for our businesses and find answers to a couple of the world’s toughest problems.
We innovate 24 hours an afternoon, with sites in Niskayuna, The big apple; Bangalore, India; Shanghai, China; Munich, Germany; and fifth global research facility to open in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2012. Visit GE Global Research on the internet at www.ge.com/research. Hook up with our technologists at http://edisonsdesk.com and http://twitter.com/edisonsdesk.
About GE Technology Ventures
Technology Ventures is devoted to making new spaces for GE’s technology, driving the commercialization and business development of licensing portfolios for GE in non-core & adjacent markets. With close ties to GE Global Research, Technology Ventures supports the security, development and marketing of GE’s intellectual property on an international level, offering a dynamic combination of investing, licensing, industry and technical expertise.
About GE
GE is a diversified global infrastructure, finance and media company that’s built to satisfy essential world needs. From energy, water, transportation and health to access to money and knowledge, GE serves customers in additional than 100 countries and employs greater than 300,000 people worldwide. For additional information, visit the company’s Website at http://www.ge.com. GE is Imagination at Work.
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