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Optical Storage

Optical storage uses light to read data stored on optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, and Blu-Ray discs. Optical storage devices range from the earliest CD-ROMs introduced in 1982 to later innovations like USB flash drives and Blu-Ray discs that provide greater storage capacity. Optical discs store data through a layer of aluminum or other metal coated on a polycarbonate plastic base, which is read by a laser detecting microscopic pits and lands on the disc's surface.

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65 views

Optical Storage

Optical storage uses light to read data stored on optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, and Blu-Ray discs. Optical storage devices range from the earliest CD-ROMs introduced in 1982 to later innovations like USB flash drives and Blu-Ray discs that provide greater storage capacity. Optical discs store data through a layer of aluminum or other metal coated on a polycarbonate plastic base, which is read by a laser detecting microscopic pits and lands on the disc's surface.

Uploaded by

Sharon
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Optical Storage

Optical storage is data that is stored on optical readable medium. Light is


used to aid the device in reading the data that stored. Optical storage
devices range from CD-ROMs which was established in 1982 to Flash drives
which were introduced in 1999. The latest optical storage to date is the Blu
Ray Disc.

READ-ONLY OPTICAL DISCS

● Compact Disc – CDs have Read-Only Memory that can hold around
800MB of data. The data cannot be edited or deleted once added to
the disc so therefore it cannot be deleted ‘accidentally’. CDs are
non-volatile.
● Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) – DVDs gave Random-Access Memory.
They can hold up to a total of 4.7GB of data. There are also dual-layer
DVDs that can hold up to twice that amount.
● Blu-Ray - Blu-Ray discs are a recent replacement of DVDs. This disc
can hold from 25 – 50GB of data. A dual-layer can hold up 100GB.
Blu-Ray disc are consider random-access devices. The ‘Blu’ in Blu-ray
is of a fact that the light in the laser is blue instead of red. Blue light
has a shorter wave -length than red light.It can be used in the same
ways as DVD-ROM but, since they can hold more data, they are used
to store very high-quality, high-definition(HD)videos.
● USB Memory Stick – Memory sticks ( thumb drive), since invented
has made many other forms of portable storage become obsolete
such as CDs and DVDs.
● Memory card - Many of the devices used today require memory
cards to store data such as cameras. Memory cards are compact and
non- volatile. One of most common formats of memory card are SD
Cards. Some phones also have extra internal memory card to store
data so don’t have to depend on memory
● Smart Card - Many credit cards (e.g. ‘chip-and-pin’ cards), door entry
cards, satellite TV cards, etc. have replaced the very limited storage of
the magnetic strip (the dark strip on the back of older cards) with
flash memory. This is more reliable and has a much larger storage
capacity. Cards with flash memory.
CD- construction and technology

A compact disc, or CD, is an optical storage medium with digital data


recorded on it. The digital data can be in the form of audio, video, or
computer information. When the CD is played, the information is read or
detected by a tightly focused light source called a laser (thus the name
optical medium). This article will focus on audio compact discs, which are
used to play back recorded music.

Raw Materials

A compact disc is a deceptively simple looking device considering the


technology required to make it. CDs consist of three layers of materials:

A base layer made of a polycarbonate plastic.

A thin layer of aluminum coating over the polycarbonate plastic.

A clear protective acrylic coating over the aluminum layer.

Some manufacturers use a silver or even gold layer instead of the


aluminum layer in the manufacture of their compact discs.
A CD is 4.72 inches (120 millimeters) in diameter and .047 inches (1.2
millimeters) thick. The positioning hole in the middle is .59 of an inch (15
millimeters) in diameter. A CD usually weighs around .53 of an ounce (15
grams). A standard CD can store up to 74 minutes of data. However, most
CDs contain only about 50 minutes of music, all of which is recorded on
only one side of the CD (the underside).
The Manufacturing Process
Compact discs must be manufactured under very clean and dust free
conditions in a "clean room," which is kept free from virtually all dust
particles. The air in the room is specially filtered to keep out dirt, and
occupants of the room must wear special clothing. Because an average
dust particle is 100 times larger than the average pit and land on a CD,
even the smallest dust particle can render a disc useless.

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