Use of continuous-wave illumination for two-photon three-dimensional optical bit data storage in a photobleaching...

We show that a continuous-wave laser beam at an infrared wavelength of 800 nm can be used for two-photon three-dimensional bit data storage in a photobleaching polymer. We successfully demonstrate recording and reading of six layers of data bits with a transverse bit separation of 4.3microm and an axial layer separation of 20microm . This result leads to a three-dimensional bit density of approximately 3Gbits/cm(3) .