Quantum dots may be future of computer memory

Let’s face it, today’s computer memory and storage is far from perfect. Scientists at the Technical University of Berlin are trying to get us a bit closer.

There are three main types of storage and memory today. DRAM (dynamic random access memory), the memory inside your computer, is fast but can’t keep data for long - it must be refreshed 100 times per second to maintain its data.

Flash memory, the memory used in memory sticks and some devices like the iPod nano, can store data for long periods of time without refreshing. However, it writes information about 1000 times slower than DRAM.

Hard drives, what your computer uses for permanent storage, are poor performers in both categories - the write very slowly (even slower than flash memory) and fail after a few years on average, meaning your data is not too safe.

However, researchers are looking at a possible solution to all of these problems - quantum dots. These quantum dots are tiny “islands” of semiconductor which comprise memory, and are capable of creating storage which is fast and long lasting.

Researchers have recently shown that quantum dot memory is capable of storing one terabyte (1000 gigabytes) of data per square inch. They have also shown that it’s possible to write information to this memory in just 6 nanoseconds, with a theoretical limit in the picosecond range. That’s blazing fast!

Although this technology is far from reaching the consumer market, with time we could see quantum dot memory popping up. It looks very promising, and could replace all of the different kinds of memory today if it can be mass manufactured. Imagine plugging a 500GB memory stick into your computer and instantly transferring a high-def movie onto it to watch later.

[via New Scientist]