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 line 1: Prathamesh Parit
line 1: Omkar Patade line 1: Ashutosh Narawale
line 2:Electronics and
line 2: Electronics and line 2: Electronics and
communication(ET)
communication(ET) communication(ET)
line 3:V.E.S. Plytechnic
line 3: V.E.S. Plytechnic line 3: V.E.S. Plytechnic)
line 4: Mumbai,India
line 4: Mumbai,India line 4: Mumbai,India
line 5: prathameshparit173@gmail.com
line 5: email address or ORCID line 5: email address or ORCID
 Abstract—Securely storing large amounts of information to that generated by roughly thirteen Heysham 2 nuclear
over relatively short timescales of 100 years, comparable to the power stations (one of the biggest stations in UK, net 1240
span of the human memory, is a challenging problem. MWe). Most of these data centres are built based on hard-
Conventional optical data storage technology used in CDs and disk drive (HDD), with only a few designed on optical discs.
DVDs has reached capacities of hundreds of gigabits per HDD is the most popular solution for digital data storage
square inch, but its lifetime is limited to a decade. DNA based according to the International Data Corporation.2 However,
data storage can hold hundreds of terabytes per gram, but the HDD is not an energy efficient option for data archiving; the
durability is limited. The major challenge is the lack of loading energy consumption is around 0.04 W/GB.6 In
appropriate combination of storage technology and medium
addition, HDD is an unsatisfactory candidate for long-term
possessing the advantages of both high capacity and long
lifetime. The recording and retrieval of the digital data with
storage due to the short lifetime of the hardware and requires
a nearly unlimited lifetime was implemented by transferring data every two years to avoid any loss.
femtosecond laser nanostructuring of fused quartz. The Therefore, the techniques which exhibit high capacity, low
storage allows unprecedented properties including hundreds of energy consumption and long lifetimes are essential for the
terabytes per disc data capacity, thermal stability up to 1000 future. Recent attempts to develop long-term and high
°C, and virtually unlimited lifetime at room temperature capacity data storage and to prove that the data will survive
opening a new era of eternal data archiving . for millions to billions years have been promising.7
However, despite the space eternal memory concepts, the
Keywords—form birefringence, ultrafast phenomena, proposed alternative technologies storing information on
material processing, optical data multiplexing. DNA,8 silicon-nitride/tungsten based medium,9
microscopically etched/electroformed nickel plates10,11 are
I. INTRODUCTION (HEADING 1) technologically expensive and slow to be practical. The
current solution is the optical disc technique, which only
The evolution of information storage during the history holds a small percentage of data centres usage at present.
of mankind involves four distinct eras: painted information, Due to the fact that data cannot be reached
carved information, scripted information and digitalized instantaneously, optical disc is not the best option for
information.1,2 The modern binary number system was major storage. Nevertheless, since energy is mainly
first introduced by Gottfried Leibniz in 1703, who was consumed during the initial data writing process, optical
inspired by a Chinese binary system called I Ching. The first discs is more economic in energy usage. The optical disc
modern breakthrough of digitization came in 1801 when drive will stay idle after the data is well written. Hence, the
the Jacquard loom was first demonstrated. The Jacquard advantages such as low price and reduced energy
loom simplified complex manufacturing textiles processes by consumption makes the optical disc system the ideal system
controlling a chain of punched cards in a continuous for data archiving and internet backup currently. It enables
sequence. The invention of this device enabled complex the storage of thousands of optical discs and read/write,
operations and data storage through paper punched cards. transfer and placement of the discs simultaneously. The
The first semiconductor diode in 1906 eventually allowed specific disc, which contains data from any one user, will
electronic circuit and data storage to become a reality. be picked up and transferred to the read/write drive before
Through the 20th century, one of the main innovations for accessing based on user habits. This kind of optical-disc-
data storage came about with the invention of optical discs based data storage system can lower the cost and spend less
(CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays). With high speed rotation drives energy, meanwhile ensuring that users can access files from
(around 10,000 rpm), the writing rate of a Blu-ray disc could their own terminals instantly. We believe that optical data
achieve around 100 MB/s. This development provided the storage, well known for its green characteristics, will be the
ability to store large quantities of data in a weightless mainstream technique for data archiving in the near future.
(around 20 g), small (standard 12 cm diameter) and high The main kind of optical discs employed for data archiving
capacity (up to 1 TB) DVD or Blu-ray disc. With the in big data centres are Blu-ray discs, which are limited to
invention of the laser diode (a gallium arsenide tens of GBs. However, can the GB-scale Blu-ray disc cope
semiconductor diode firstly demonstrated in 1962) made it with the explosive demand of data storage? In 2020, tons of
possible to compress the whole optical disc reading and Blu-ray discs will occupy tremendous amounts space (about
writing system in a very compact form. As a result, the CD, 34 round trips to the moon with Blu-ray discs).4 Therefore,
DVD and Blu-ray read/write technology are ubiquitous in an optical disc which enables high capacity is essential for
everyday life: laptops, video game consoles, cars, portable our future needs. Currently optical data storage is based in
CD players, etc. In the 21st century, the ability to store predominantly planar technology, which exploits the linear
and access data is growing rapidly with the internet light absorption of the material, thus is constrained to the
bringing all forms of information technology to everyone’s surface modification. In addition, planar technology is
fingertips. We cannot deny that this tangibility of information limited in the number of modification layers, consequently
has made life faster, informative and more enjoyable than restricting the capacity. In order to further expand the
ever. However with this ability, every individual or potential optical data storage capacity, a volumetric approach
company that is generating large amounts of data on a daily was suggested, known as 3D optical memory, where data can
basis, which in turn introduces the desperate need of more be stored in multiple layers making use of the whole volume
efficient forms of data storage. The International Data of the material.
Corporation investigated that total capacity of data stored is
increasing by around 60% each year.3 As a result, more than
39,000 exabytes of data will be generated by 2020.4 This II. EASE OF USE
amount of data will cause a series of problems and one of the
main will be power consumption. 1.5% of the total US A. Selecting a Template (Heading 2)
electricity consumption in 2010 was given to the data centres 1.3 Rewriting and durability of structures in glass Besides
in the U.S.2 According to a report by the Natural Resources the benefits of multiplexing, the 5D optical data based on
Defence Council, the power consumption of all data centres nanogratings can be also erased and rewritten, which are two
in the U.S. will reach roughly 140 billion kilowatt-hours per important features when considering data storage. The initial
each year by 2020.5 This amount of electricity is equivalent nanogratings can be replaced with new ones whose direction
is dependent on the incident rewrite laser beam.47 The controls only the relative ratio of different intensity levels. As
rewriting process can be clearly observed in Figure 4 (a- the number of dots varies from one hologram to another,
d), where the original spot is rewritten with 3, 30, 300 and the absolute intensity of each spot varies. Thus, the
4000 pulses of a beam with a laser polarization rotated by corresponding intensity levels generated by different
45°. 200 pulses should be enough to erase the previous holograms are different and create fluctuations of the
induced birefringence signal while not generating a strong retardance value from one hologram to another. The problem
new signal from the rewrite laser pulses (Figure 4. 4 (e)). is resolved by introducing a negative feedback loop into the
About 2000 pulses could completely rewrite the structure, algorithm, which redistributes the surplus of energy out of
which has the same birefringence signal as the original one. the modification region, fixing each intensity level
generated by all holograms to the certain value. The excess
energy is blocked by an aperture (AP) placed after the half-
wave plate matrix (HPM) and does not affect data recording

1.3 Rewriting and durability of structures in glass Besides the benefits of

multiplexing, the 5D optical data based on nanogratings can be also erased
and rewritten, which are two important features when considering data
storage. The initial nanogratings can be replaced with new ones whose
direction is dependent on the incident rewrite laser beam.47 The
rewriting process can be clearly observed in Figure 4 (a-d), where the
original spot is rewritten with 3, 30, 300 and 4000 pulses of a beam with a
laser polarization rotated by 45°. 200 pulses should be enough to erase the
previous induced birefringence signal while not generating a strong new
signal from the rewrite laser pulses (Figure 4. 4 (e)). About 2000 pulses 5D optical storage ultrafast writing setup. FSL and FL represent
could completely rewrite the structure, which has the same birefringence femtosecond laser and Fourier lens, respectively
signal as the original one. Figure 4. Rewriting laser-induced nanogratings
with (a) 3, (b) 30, (c) 300 and (d) 4000 pulses. The rewrite polarization is at
45 to the original polarization. (e) Intensity of the birefringence signal as a
function of number of rewrite laser pulses where the input polarization is at The oriented slow axis is perpendicularly to the polarization
45 to the original nanogratings (red squares), and at 45 to the of the incident beam. Hence, the azimuth of the slow axis
replacement nanogratings (blue dots) can be controlled by the polarization of the incident beam,
which is normally accomplished by rotating a half-wave
plate. However, the rotation takes a relatively long time (>10
The 5D optical storage technique applied to fused silica is ms) and considerably reduces writing speed. To avoid this, a
ideal due to fused silica’s high chemical and thermal stability laser imprinted half-wave plate matrix (see HPM in Figure
(Figure 5), making fused silica the ideal medium for long 6, made of 4 segments) was added to the 4f optical
term data storage.46 Latest studies have demonstrated a system enabling motion free polarization control. In the
fused silica based long lifetime 3D optical memory that focus plane of the first Fourier lens, where the half-wave
has a data capacity equivalent to a DVD disc.48,49 plate matrix was placed, several beams with different
Additional evaluation results indicate that this optical intensity distributions were projected by the hologram
memory possesses a lifetime of over 319 million years. displayed on the SLM. After passing through the segments of
the half-wave plate matrix, beams with different
ETERNAL 5D DATA STORAGE BY ULTRAFAST LASER
polarizations were obtained. Subsequently, the plane of the
WRITING IN GLASS
half-wave plate matrix that contains predefined intensity and
Data recording Data recording experiments were polarization distribution is reimaged directly into the sample
performed with an Yb:KGW based femtosecond laser by the microscope objective. After synchronizing the
system (Pharos, Light Conversion Ltd.) operating at 1030 movement of the sample with the refresh rate of the SLM,
nm and delivering 6.3 µJ pulses at 200 kHz repetition rate multiple birefringent dots with four slow axis orientations
and pulse duration tunable from 270 fs to 800 fs. Even and various phase retardance level can be simultaneously
though longer pulse duration can induce higher retardance imprinted (Figure 7). The information was encoded into two
(80 nm),50 it also leads to higher stress accumulation and states of retardance and four states of slow axis orientation.
eventual material cracking.19 As a result, the pulse Thus, each birefringent dot contained 3 bits of information.
duration was set to 280 fs. Three modification layers were
inscribed with a femtosecond laser 130-170 µm below the Conclusion
surface of a fused quartz (SiO2 glass) sample by a 1.2 NA Although digital data storage techniques are capable of
(×60) water immersion objective. In the recording procedure, storing huge amounts of information, the lifetime is limited
groups of birefringent dots were simultaneously imprinted at to decades. Recent progress in memory technologies
the designated depth (Figure 6). Each group, containing from allowed to encode the information that is capable of
1 to 100 dots, was generated with a liquid crystal based surviving for billions of years.7 The successful
spatial light modulator (SLM) and 4f optical system. The implementation of femtosecond laser nanostructured fused
holograms for the SLM were generated with an adapted quartz as high-density and, assuming the scaling of
weighted Gerchberg-Saxton (GSW) algorithm, which Arrhenius plot holds, long-lifetime storage medium
enabled discretized multi-level intensity control.51 The enabled the demonstration of eternal 5D optical memory.
discretized multi-level intensity control enabled data The storage allows hundreds of terabytes per disc data
multiplexing via retardance. By using the adapted GSW capacity, thermal stability up to 1000°C and nearly
algorithm, several discrete levels of intensity could be unlimited lifetime at room temperature. We believe that
achieved with a single hologram.51 However, the algorithm
the eternal 5D optical data storage in glass can be femtosecond laser in quartz glass, which is essential for
produced on a commercial scale for organizations, such preserving comprehensive information and storing it in
as national archives, museums, libraries or any private space for future generations. More futuristically, “text
companies. Also, the projects such as “Time Capsule to messaging to the future” could be now possible. Could the
Mars”,64 “Moon Mail”,65 or “Lunar Mission One”66 could technology of the future be advanced enough to send the
benefit from the extreme durability of data imprinted by reply?
Although digital data storage techniques are capable of can be produced on a commercial scale for
storing huge amounts of information, the lifetime is organizations, such as national archives, museums,
limited to decades. Recent progress in memory libraries or any private companies. Also, the projects
technologies allowed to encode the information that is such as “Time Capsule to Mars”,64 “Moon Mail”,65 or
capable of surviving for billions of years.7 The “Lunar Mission One”66 could benefit from the extreme
successful implementation of femtosecond laser durability of data imprinted by femtosecond laser in
nanostructured fused quartz as high-density and, assuming quartz glass, which is essential for preserving
the scaling of Arrhenius plot holds, long-lifetime storage comprehensive information and storing it in space for
medium enabled the demonstration of eternal 5D optical future generations. More futuristically, “text messaging
memory. The storage allows hundreds of terabytes per to the future” could be now possible. Could the
disc data capacity, thermal stability up to 1000°C and technology of the future be advanced enough to send the
nearly unlimited lifetime at room temperature. We reply?
believe that the eternal 5D optical data storage in glass
can be produced on a commercial scale for quartz glass, which is essential for preserving
organizations, such as national archives, museums, comprehensive information and storing it in space for
libraries or any private companies. Also, the projects future generations. More futuristically, “text messaging
such as “Time Capsule to Mars”,64 “Moon Mail”,65 or to the future” could be now possible. Could the
“Lunar Mission One”66 could benefit from the extreme technology of the future be advanced enough to send the
durability of data imprinted by femtosecond laser in reply
quartz glass, which is essential for preserving future generations. More futuristically, “text messaging
comprehensive information and storing it in space for to the future” could be now poss
to the future” could be now possible.Could the technology
of the future be advanced enough to send the reply