Light-Based Memory Chip

First Light-Based Memory Chip Puts SSDs on Notice

Steve Dent | September 28, 2015

Researchers have created the first optical-only chip that can permanently store data, a discovery that could lead to storage devices that leave SSDs in the dust. Non-volatile flash memory currently relies on electronic chips, which are speed-limited by the heat and resistance generated by colliding electrons. Light-based circuits don't have that problem, but so far "nano-photonic" chips created by the likes of IBM are volatile (need to be powered), making them a non-option for permanent storage. 

A New Light-Based Memory Chip Could Change the Fundamentals of Computing. Source: http://gizmodo.com/a-new-light-based-memory-chip-could-change-the-fundamen-1731307674 

<more at http://www.engadget.com/2015/09/28/first-nano-photonic-memory-chip/; related link: http://www.gizmag.com/first-all-optical-permanent-on-chip-memory/39523/ (All-optical permanent on-chip memory paves the way for faster, more efficient computers. September 27, 2015) and http://gizmodo.com/a-new-light-based-memory-chip-could-change-the-fundamen-1731307674 (A New Light-Based Memory Chip Could Change the Fundamentals of Computing. September 21, 2015)>