The scientists were able to significantly increase the capacity of an optical disc by implementing a3D planar recordingarchitecture.
The most advanced Blu-ray discs support up to four layers, typically carrying around 100 gigabytes of data.
Stacking many petabit discs together could reduce exabit data centers to a fraction of their current typical size.
Consolidating servers would also drastically lower heat and energy consumption.
Additionally, utilizing extreme-capacity optical discs simplifies data migration and minimizes the need for it.
Another potential advantage is longevity the researchers claim the petabit discs can last 50 to 100 years.
Other novel methods of mass storage are also underinvestigation.
