Multi Tbit/in(2) storage densities with thermomechanical probes

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Data Storage

Background:

• Scanning probe microscopy offers high spatial resolution for advanced data storage.
• Achieving high storage density is crucial for large-scale data repositories.
• Thermomechanical embossing is a promising technique for creating data storage media.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate multi-terabit per square inch data storage density using scanning probes.
• To investigate the fundamental limits of feature resolution in polymer embossing.
• To explore the role of polymer cooperativity in nanoscale indentation formation.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing scanning probes for thermomechanical embossing of information as indentation marks into a polymer film.
• Analyzing the nonlinear interactions between closely spaced indents and scaling relations governing indent geometry.
• Investigating polymer cooperative effects and alpha-transitions in relation to indentation radius.

Main Results:

• Achieved data storage densities exceeding multi-terabit per square inch.
• Demonstrated that polymer cooperativity dictates a minimum indentation radius, around the correlation length of cooperatively rearranged regions.
• Established a lower limit of 5 nm for indentation mark diameter, independent of indenter sharpness.

Conclusions:

• Polymer cooperativity and alpha-transitions are observable in nanoscale indentation experiments.
• The minimum indentation size is governed by intrinsic polymer properties, not solely by the indenter.
• A 5 nm resolution limit exists for embossing technologies, impacting future high-density data storage development.