13.04.2009, Today's Zaman

Bilkent tech to make DVDs with 1,000 times more capacity

Bilkent University develops new tech that enables DVDs to store 1,000 times more data than ordinary ones.

The Bilkent University Nanotechnology Research Center (NANOTAM) has developed a new technology that enables DVDs to store more than a thousand times as much data as those currently on the market.

Developed by Dr. Ekmel Özbay, the head of NANOTAM, and students Özgür Attila Çakmak and Koray Aydın, the new nanomaterials will pave the way for production of the next era of DVDs, which will be able to store thousands of movies on a single disc.

The invention by the Turkish scientists was published in one of the most prestigious physics journals, the Physical Review Letters. Dr. Özbay said they focused their studies on concentrating rays on a point that covers as small a space as possible. "We have developed a new technology that enhances the number of rays passing through a small dot by thousands of times. With this technology more data will be stored on DVDs in a smaller area," he said.

Özbay said a normal DVD has a maximum capacity of 50 to 100 gigabytes and that they will increase this by at least a thousand times. "We have created a magical material which enables rays to pass through a very small point," the NANOTAM head noted.

The new technology permits a far smaller notch to be etched on the DVD surface with a wider wavelength. It is expected to offer a higher definition than the currently used advanced optical formats such as Blu-ray.

Underlining that their study had implications for the global science arena after being published in the Physical Review Letters, Özbay said they have opened a new era in DVD technology. "We will be able to see new-age DVDs that can store a huge amount of data," he said, underlining that they expect to commence mass production with a local company; however, there isn't a company with such capabilities in Turkey yet.

NANOTAM performs extended research in nano-science and nanotechnology. An interdisciplinary research environment which houses the nanotechnology- related research efforts in science and engineering faculties. NANOTAM serves all departments in both of the aforementioned faculties as well as other Turkish universities that request access to the center's facilities.

The center has an area of 250 square meters dedicated to sub-micron lithography along with general purpose electrical and optical characterization measurements. It also has nanofabrication and characterization laboratories.