OPTICAL MEMORY(GROUP 8)

1. What is Optical Memory? What is their roles and where is it in the memory system?
(Optical Memory là gì? Đóng vai trò gì và nằm ở vị trí nào trong hệ thống bộ nhớ máy
tính?)
> Optical data storage technologies use lasers to write to, and read from, small discs
that contain a light-sensitive layer upon which data can be stored. One thing that sets
optical data storage apart from other storage formats is that the discs themselves are
small, portable, and do not wear out easily with continuous use. This makes them
particularly useful for storing data.
Recording and reproducing data involves several steps:
1. Encoding: Transforming data into a binary format to be stored on a disc. 2. Writing:
Storing data on a disc by either burning pits or modifying its reflective properties.
3. Reading: Retrieving data from the disc using a laser that detects changes in light
reflection or polarisation.
4. Decoding: Converting the binary information back into the original data.
Laser Disk -> CD -> DVD -> Bluray
- Initial Research (1960s - 1970s): In the 1960s and 1970s, scientists and engineers
began researching the use of light for data storage. Initial ideas included using
laser light to write and read data on surfaces coated with a special material.
- First Development of CD (1980s): In the 1982, companies like Philips and Sony
developed and introduced the Compact Disc (CD), the first optical disc used to
store digital data and multimedia content such as music and videos.
- Introduction of DVD (1990s): The Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) emerged in 1996
as an improvement over the CD, offering larger data storage capacity and better
quality images and sound. DVDs became a popular medium for distributing
movies, video games, and digital data.
- Blu-ray (2000s): Blu-ray technology was developed by leading technology
companies like Sony, Philips, and Panasonic. It was introduced in the late 2000s
and provided extremely large data storage capacity (up to 25GB for a single-
layer disc) and high-quality images and sound.
- New Technologies and Changes (2000s - Present): Since the 2000s, there has
been continuous development in optical disc technology, with new standards such
as HD DVD and 4K Blu-ray. However, with the advancement of other digital
storage and distribution mediums such as USB, cloud storage, and streaming, the
popularity of optical discs has significantly declined.
 In the computer memory system, data stored on optical disks is one of the auxiliary
storage media. Optical disks are not part of the main memory of the computer, such as
RAM (Random Access Memory), solid-state drives (SSD), or hard disk drives (HDD).
Instead, optical disks are commonly used for long-term data storage or for distributing
multimedia content such as video, audio, software, and documents. When needed, data
from optical disks can be copied or read into the computer's main memory for processing
or playback.
=> optical disks are often considered part of auxiliary or peripheral storage (bộ nhớ phụ
hoặc bộ nhớ lưu trữ ngoại vi) in the computer memory system

2. What is the history of optical memory?(Specify each generation: what the structure
changes with each generation of development, how those changes help the memory system -->
give a comparison table of each generation)

The CD is a collaboration between Philips and Sony. Philips researches lasers and Sony
studies digital music
1978: Theorizing the development of a memory that reads data with a laser beam
1982: first practical model for the realization of theory 1978 CD (1st generation optical disc)
1996: 2nd generation optical disc DVD
2006: HD-DVD
2006: 3rd generation Bluray Disk stores more data (larger memory) by making wavelengths
smaller. Smaller wavelengths make the beam more precise, so more data will be stored on the
same surface area than DVDs.
Actual situation
Although the use of optical discs has decreased significantly due to the popularity of other
storage media such as portable hard drives, USBs, cloud services, and online gateways, there are
still some instances where people still use optical discs:
- Software installation: Some software is still distributed through optical discs for
installation on computers.
- Storage of personal data: Some people still use optical discs to store personal data such as
photos, videos, or important documents.
- Data backup: For those who don't want cloud storage or portable hard drives, optical
discs are still a relatively safe data storage option.
- System recovery: In some cases, optical discs are still used to boot and recover the
system when the computer crashes.
However, the rate of optical disc usage has decreased significantly compared to the past, and
many people use other data storage and transmission media as mentioned above.

3. CD construction - the first practical application according to the mechanism of operation

Optical Memory based on theory? (with an illustration explaining the role of each
component in the structure of the CD)
Compact disc is portable storage devices used for storing digital data like recording,
storing, and playing video, and audio.
For instance, people mostly use CD for listening to music.

Compact disc, sometimes known as CD is made of circular shape, typically has a diameter of 12
cm, or 4.5 inches, storage capacity of a CD is 700 MB. There are four distinct layers in it.
• Top Layer : is used to mark the disc’s identification marks, and it may also carry
printed instructions or a name identifying the contents of the device.
• Lacquer Layer: The device is protected from exposure to atmospheric air, which
can cause oxidation.
• Reflective Layer: which is constructed of aluminium material and is located
beneath the lacquer layer, is where the laser beam is pointed in order to catch a reflection, which
can then be used to read the disk’s data.
• Polycarbonate Disc Layer: The data are encoded for the compact disc to function
properly in the polycarbonate layer at the bottom of the disc
 - Data Organization

The data is arranged as spiral track from the disc’s inner hole to its outer edge, because the CD is
made of circular shape. On this data track, it can be cut into small parts called “Track”
For example: A music CD has 13 songs, the data track is cut into 13 segments, called Track01,
Track02.....Track 13 .

CD data is represented as tiny indentations known as pits, encoded in a spiral track molded into
the top of the polycarbonate layer. The areas between pits are known as lands. Each pit is 0.5
microns wide, and varies from 0.83 microns to 3.5 microns in length.[5] The distance between
the tracks (the pitch) is 1.6 microns
In summary, the intricate arrangement of pits and lands on a CD allows for precise data retrieval,
making it a remarkable medium for both audio and general-purpose data storage.
3. How does it work, how to retrieve data of the CD?
Zoom in to Optical Disk
Đĩa quang (theo đúng như ý nghĩa của tên gọi) sử dụng các tính chất quang học để lưu trữ
dữ liệu. Trên đĩa quang có các rãnh theo hình xoắn trôn ốc từ trong ra ngoài chứa các “pit” và
“land".
Pit là các khoảng không phản xạ hoặc phản xạ rất ít khi tia laser chiếu vào. Land là các
khoảng phản xạ mạnh. Tia laser đọc các pit và land và chuyển sang tín hiệu nhị phân.
Operation of optical drive:
Khi ổ đĩa hoạt động, nó sẽ xoay đĩa và trượt mắt đọc ghi từ trong ra ngoài. Tốc độ xoay
của đĩa và tốc độ trượt của mắt đọc ghi được tính toán để tia laser có vận tốc tuyến tính không
đổi so với đĩa. Tia laser di chuyển so với đĩa, bắt đầu từ đầu xoắn ở gần trung tâm, cứ thế đi hết
đường xoắn ốc của dữ liệu.
Reading data
Khi đọc dữ liệu, tia laser công suất thấp liên tục chiếu sáng, được di chuyển trên mặt đĩa
theo hình xoắn ốc đã nêu. Khi chiếu vào bề mặt đĩa quang nếu gặp phần pit thì tia sáng sẽ không
phản xạ, còn khi chiếu qua phần land thì tia sáng sẽ phản xạ lại mắt đọc. Đường này có dạng 2
tia trùng nhau.
Tại ổ đĩa quang, trên đường chiếu của tia sáng có hệ lăng kính bán mạ để phản xạ tia sáng
truyền ngược lại (khi chiếu vào vùng land) vào một bộ cảm biến để nhận tín hiệu (là
các photodiode).
Light intensity to channel bits:
Tín hiệu sau khi nhận được cần phải xử lý rất phức tạp. Các phần tử pit và land kể trên
không phải đại diện cho các bit nhị phân. Các bit nhị phân trong hệ này được tạo nên bởi
channel bit hay là một xung thời gian có độ dài(1/4.321.800 phần của giây). Các channel bit
này quy định khoảng thời gian mà một bit có ý nghĩa. Các bit"0"và"1"được quy định như sau,
nếu như tia laser quét vào vùng land, mỗi channel bit sẽ bằng một bit"0"và chia đều vùng land
này, khi tia laser chiếu vào phần viền, giữa vùng land và một hố pit, channel bit ở giai đoạn
chuyển giao này sẽ bằng bit"1". Sau đó mỗi channel bit sẽ bằng một bit"0"và chia đều vùng pit
đó.
 Writing data

Question:
- Why should we develop optical discs when there are other tools for storing and recording
data developed earlier?
- Why are optical discs no longer as widely developed as they were back then?
- Now what are optical discs usually used for?