Bulk optical memory

Volumetric optical memory is a type of computer memory in which information can be written and read in three-dimensional space (and not in the usual two-dimensional plane , such as in compact disks ).

This method of storing information is potentially capable of allowing about one terabyte of data to be recorded on disks comparable in size to compact disks . Reading and writing files is achieved by focusing the laser in volume. However, since the data structure is voluminous, the laser beam must pass through other data points to reach the area where it is necessary to read or write. Thus, a kind of nonlinearity is required so that these data do not interfere with reaching the desired point.

For 2017, there are no commercial products on the mass market based on three-dimensional optical data storage.