CUIJK, The Netherlands, August 19 /PRNewswire/
-- At the heart of the increase in the density
of data storage is the ability to produce small
lenses that operate at short wavelengths. These
Solid-Immersion Lenses (SILs) conform to tight
tolerances on diameter, thickness, surface form
and roughness at a diameter of 1.0mm or smaller.
Element Six announces the development of a process
that can obtain the required form accuracy in 1mm
Synthetic Single Crystal Diamond spheres. This
new process has improved the accuracy of the lenses
by a factor 10 compared to earlier techniques.
Since the introduction of the compact disk in
1985, it has become the standard storage medium
for music, digital photography, computer data and
games. As the demand for disk capacity increases,
future generations of optical media will need significantly
higher storage capacities. This trend is seen in
DVD and its successor the Blu-Ray disk. Diamond
lenses are a crucial component of the next generation
of storage technology. Diamond lenses will enable
a storage capacity of up to 1TB (1000 Giga Bytes)
per disc.
The increased disk capacity is achieved technically
by reducing the wavelengths of the readout laser
and by increasing the numerical aperture (NA) of
the focusing lens. To achieve a high NA value a
material with high refractive index and transparency
at the wavelength used is needed. Diamond is the
ultimate material for this application, with the
largest known refractive index of any transparent
material in the blue and ultraviolet region of
the spectrum. Synthetic Diamond producing using
Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) has been optimized
by Element Six in order to produce the required
defect free optical material.
"This Lens is an exciting breakthrough and Element
Six are proud to be participating in this new diamond
technology that will enable mass storage of data
for business and consumer applications. This is
another example of a development of diamond processing
technology on the nano-scale and proof of the versatility
of diamond and Element Six being at the forefront
of development", stated Christian Hultner the MD
of Element Six.
About Element Six
Element Six is the world leader in the production
of all forms of synthetic diamond for industrial
use. Element Six has pioneered the development
of CVD diamond technology since the 1980s, with
a world-renowned research centre at Ascot dedicated
to this activity. CVD diamond opens up many new
application areas outside the traditional abrasive
uses of synthetic diamond. Uses of CVD diamond
include laser exit windows, cutting tools, surgical
blades, windows for high-power gyrotrons, heat-spreaders
for electronic devices as well as active electronic
devices.
CONTACT: For further information contact: Thomas
Schaich, Element Six info@e6.comB.V., P.O. Box
119, 5430 AC Cuijk, The Netherlands, Tel. +31-485-395-741
www.e6.com
