{"id":653675,"date":"2025-02-15T11:30:26","date_gmt":"2025-02-15T08:30:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/quantum-inspired-advancement-turns-crystal-gaps-into-terabyte-storage-for-classical-memory\/"},"modified":"2025-02-15T11:30:26","modified_gmt":"2025-02-15T08:30:26","slug":"quantum-inspired-advancement-turns-crystal-gaps-into-terabyte-storage-for-classical-memory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/quantum-inspired-advancement-turns-crystal-gaps-into-terabyte-storage-for-classical-memory\/","title":{"rendered":"#Quantum-inspired advancement turns crystal gaps into terabyte storage for classical memory"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2924cfb4f46\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2924cfb4f46\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/quantum-inspired-advancement-turns-crystal-gaps-into-terabyte-storage-for-classical-memory\/#From_radiation_dosimetry_to_optical_storage\" >From radiation dosimetry to optical storage<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/quantum-inspired-advancement-turns-crystal-gaps-into-terabyte-storage-for-classical-memory\/#Rare_earth\" >Rare earth<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-gallery lightGallery\">\n<div data-thumb=\"https:\/\/scx1.b-cdn.net\/csz\/news\/tmb\/2025\/terabytes-of-data-in-a.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/scx2.b-cdn.net\/gfx\/news\/hires\/2025\/terabytes-of-data-in-a.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"A crystal used in the study charges under UV light. The process created by the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering Zhong Lab could be used with a variety of materials, taking advantage of rare earths' powerful, flexible optical properties. Credit: UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering \/ Zhong Lab\">\n<figure class=\"article-img\">\n            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/scx1.b-cdn.net\/csz\/news\/800a\/2025\/terabytes-of-data-in-a.jpg\" alt=\"Terabytes of data in a millimeter crystal\" title=\"A crystal used in the study charges under UV light. The process created by the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering Zhong Lab could be used with a variety of materials, taking advantage of rare earths' powerful, flexible optical properties. Credit: UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering \/ Zhong Lab\" width=\"800\" height=\"529\"\/><figcaption class=\"text-darken text-low-up text-truncate-js text-truncate mt-3\">\n                A crystal used in the study charges under UV light. The process created by the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering Zhong Lab could be used with a variety of materials, taking advantage of rare earths&#8217; powerful, flexible optical properties. Credit: UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering \/ Zhong Lab<br \/>\n            <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>From punch card-operated looms in the 1800s to modern cellphones, if an object has an &#8220;on&#8221; and an &#8220;off&#8221; state, it can be used to store information.<\/p>\n<p>In a computer laptop, the binary ones and zeroes are transistors either running at low or high voltage. On a compact disc, the one is a spot where a tiny indented &#8220;pit&#8221; turns to a flat &#8220;land&#8221; or vice versa, while a zero is when there&#8217;s no change.<\/p>\n<p>Historically, the size of the object making the &#8220;ones&#8221; and &#8220;zeroes&#8221; has put a limit on the size of the storage device. But now, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (UChicago PME) researchers have explored a technique to make ones and zeroes out of crystal defects, each the size of an individual atom for classical computer memory <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>lications.<\/p>\n<p>Their research <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.degruyter.com\/document\/doi\/10.1515\/nanoph-2024-0635\/html\" target=\"_blank\">was published<\/a> today in <i>Nanophotonics<\/i>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Each memory cell is a single missing atom\u2014a single defect,&#8221; said UChicago PME Asst. Prof. Tian Zhong. &#8220;Now you can pack terabytes of bits within a small cube of material that&#8217;s only a millimeter in size.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The innovation is a true example of UChicago PME&#8217;s interdisciplinary research, using quantum techniques to revolutionize classical, non-quantum computers and turning research on radiation dosimeters\u2014most commonly known as the devices that store how much radiation hospital workers absorb from X-ray machines\u2014into groundbreaking microelectronic memory storage.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We found a way to integrate solid-state physics applied to radiation dosimetry with a research group that works strongly in quantum, although our work is not exactly quantum,&#8221; said first author Leonardo Fran\u00e7a, a postdoctoral researcher in Zhong&#8217;s lab. &#8220;There is a demand for people who are doing research on quantum systems, but at the same time, there is a demand for improving the storage capacity of classical non-volatile memories. And it&#8217;s on this interface between quantum and optical data storage where our work is grounded.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"From_radiation_dosimetry_to_optical_storage\"><\/span>From radiation dosimetry to optical storage<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The research got its start during Fran\u00e7a&#8217;s Ph.D. research at the University of S\u00e3o Paulo in Brazil. He was studying radiation dosimeters, the devices that passively monitor how much radiation workers in hospitals, synchrotrons and other radiation facilities receive on the job..<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In the hospitals and in particle accelerators, for instance, it&#8217;s needed to monitor how much of a radiation dose people are exposed to,&#8221; said Fran\u00e7a. &#8220;There are some materials that have this ability to absorb radiation and store that information for a certain amount of time.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He soon became fascinated about how through optical techniques\u2014shining a light\u2014he could manipulate and &#8220;read&#8221; that information.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-gallery lightGallery\">\n<div data-thumb=\"https:\/\/scx1.b-cdn.net\/csz\/news\/tmb\/2025\/terabytes-of-data-in-a-1.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/scx2.b-cdn.net\/gfx\/news\/2025\/terabytes-of-data-in-a-1.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Researchers in the lab of Asst. Prof. Tian Zhong of the UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, including postdoctoral researcher and first author Leonardo Fran\u00e7a (pictured), have explored a technique to store memory out of crystal defects. Credit: UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering \/ Zhong Lab\">\n<figure class=\"article-img text-center\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/scx1.b-cdn.net\/csz\/news\/800a\/2025\/terabytes-of-data-in-a-1.jpg\" alt=\"Terabytes of data in a millimeter crystal\" title=\"Researchers in the lab of Asst. Prof. Tian Zhong of the UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, including postdoctoral researcher and first author Leonardo Fran\u00e7a (pictured), have explored a technique to store memory out of crystal defects. Credit: UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering \/ Zhong Lab\"\/><figcaption class=\"text-left text-darken text-truncate text-low-up mt-3\">\n                Researchers in the lab of Asst. Prof. Tian Zhong of the UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, including postdoctoral researcher and first author Leonardo Fran\u00e7a (pictured), have explored a technique to store memory out of crystal defects. Credit: UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering \/ Zhong Lab<br \/>\n            <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;When the crystal absorbs sufficient energy, it releases electrons and holes. And these charges are captured by the defects,&#8221; Fran\u00e7a said. &#8220;We can read that information. You can release the electrons, and we can read the information by optical means.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Fran\u00e7a soon saw the potential for memory storage. He brought this non-quantum work into Zhong&#8217;s quantum laboratory to create an interdisciplinary innovation using quantum techniques to build classical memories.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We&#8217;re creating a new type of microelectronic device, a quantum-inspired <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a>,&#8221; Zhong said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ads w-100 my-4 article-main__more bg-light p-3 border\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-3\">\n        Discover the latest in <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/sciencee\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"5\" title=\"Science\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">science<\/a>, tech, and space with over <strong>100,000 subscribers<\/strong> who rely on Phys.org for daily insights.<br \/>\n        Sign up for our <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/newsletter\/\" target=\"_blank\">free newsletter<\/a> and get updates on breakthroughs,<br \/>\n        innovations, and research that matter\u2014<strong>daily or weekly<\/strong>.\n    <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Rare_earth\"><\/span>Rare earth<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>To create the new memory storage technique, the team added ions of &#8220;rare earth,&#8221; a group of elements also known as lanthanides, to a crystal.<\/p>\n<p>Specifically, they used a rare-earth element called Praseodymium and an Yttrium oxide crystal, but the process they reported could be used with a variety of materials, taking advantage of rare earths&#8217; powerful, flexible optical properties.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s well known that rare earths present specific electronic transitions that allows you to choose specific laser excitation wavelengths for optical control, from UV up to near-infrared regimes,&#8221; Fran\u00e7a said.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike with dosimeters, which are typically activated by X-rays or gamma rays, here the storage device is activated by a simple ultraviolet laser. The laser stimulates the lanthanides, which in turn release electrons. The electrons are trapped by some of the oxide crystal&#8217;s defects, for instance the individual gaps in the structure where a single oxygen atom should be, but isn&#8217;t.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s impossible to find crystals\u2014in nature or artificial crystals\u2014that don&#8217;t have defects,&#8221; Fran\u00e7a said. &#8220;So what we are doing is we are taking advantage of these defects.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>While these crystal defects are often used in quantum research, entangled to create &#8220;qubits&#8221; in gems from stretched diamond to spinel, the UChicago PME team found another use. They were able to guide when defects were charged and which weren&#8217;t. By designating a charged gap as &#8220;one&#8221; and an uncharged gap as &#8220;zero,&#8221; they were able to turn the crystal into a powerful memory storage device on a scale unseen in classical computing.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Within that millimeter cube, we demonstrated there are about at least a billion of these memories\u2014classical memories, traditional memories\u2014based on atoms,&#8221; Zhong said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-main__more p-4\">\n<p><strong>More information:<\/strong><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLeonardo V. S. Fran\u00e7a et al, All-optical control of charge-trapping defects in rare-earth doped oxides, <i>Nanophotonics<\/i> (2025). <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" data-doi=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1515\/nanoph-2024-0635\" target=\"_blank\">DOI: 10.1515\/nanoph-2024-0635<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"d-inline-block text-medium mt-4\">\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tProvided by<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tUniversity of Chicago<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"icon_open\" href=\"http:\/\/www.uchicago.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<use href=\"https:\/\/phys.b-cdn.net\/tmpl\/v6\/img\/svg\/sprite.svg#icon_open\" x=\"0\" y=\"0\"\/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/svg><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- print only --><\/p>\n<div class=\"d-none d-print-block\">\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<strong>Citation<\/strong>:<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tQuantum-inspired advancement turns crystal gaps into terabyte storage for classical memory (2025, February 14)<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tretrieved 15 February 2025<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tfrom https:\/\/phys.org\/<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a>\/2025-02-quantum-advancement-crystal-gaps-terabyte.html\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script id=\"facebook-jssdk\" async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/sdk.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/category\/sciencee\/\" target=\"_blank\" >Science category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2025-02-quantum-advancement-crystal-gaps-terabyte.html\" target=\"_blank\" >Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A crystal used in the study charges under UV light. The process created by the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering Zhong Lab could be used with a variety of materials, taking advantage of rare earths&#8217; powerful, flexible optical properties. Credit: UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering \/ Zhong Lab From punch card-operated&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":653676,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/scx2.b-cdn.net\/gfx\/news\/hires\/2025\/terabytes-of-data-in-a.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-653675","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sciencee"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/653675","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=653675"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/653675\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/653676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=653675"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=653675"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=653675"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}