Fujitsu Smashes Hard Disk Density Record

Your notebook computer's hard drive soon may be able to store more data. Researchers from Fujitsu say they have developed a new technology that allows more than 100 gigabits of data to be stored on one square inch of hard disk space.

This technology--a new record--is expected to lead to notebook computer drives with capacities over 100GB appearing on the market within the next year.

The new technology, developed at the Fujitsu Laboratories outside Tokyo, allows 106 gigabits of data to be stored per square inch--significantly more than the 27.5 gigabits and 32.6 gigabits per square inch recently announced by Seagate Technology and Toshiba, respectively.

To achieve the higher recording density, Fujitsu developed a new recording medium consisting of two magnetic layers separated by a thin layer of a nonmagnetic spacer material, in this case the element Ruthenium (Ru). The new design, called SF Media by Fujitsu, allows a recording density three times greater than has been possible until now, says company spokesperson Minoru Sekiguchi.

Building a Better Drive

To make use of the new medium, the company also had to develop a better disk drive head capable of writing and reading data in smaller spaces. The data playback level of the head was doubled through the use of a specular GMR (giant magnetoresistive) read head with two active layers (current disk drives have one active layer), and data recording ability was increased by 30 percent thanks to a higher precision write head, said Sekiguchi.

At around 100 gigabits per square inch, the technology rivals the "pixie dust" magnetic coating technology that IBM announced in May. IBM says its technology will offer similar densities but is not predicting it will be available commercially until 2003.

Fujitsu, in contrast, says its new technology will begin appearing in commercial products in the first or second quarter of 2002 and that engineers, with the barrier of 100 gigabits per square inch broken, are now working toward the development of densities of around 300 gigabits per square inch. The company would not speculate as to when this might be possible, says Sekiguchi.

The development also serves as a shot in the arm for Fujitsu's hard disk drive business. Struggling against competition from larger manufacturers such as Seagate, Maxtor, and IBM, the company announced last month that it is withdrawing from the 3.5-inch IDE desktop computer hard disk sector.

Instead, the company will concentrate its efforts on 2.5-inch drives for notebook computers and smaller drives for multimedia and portable electronics products--just the kind of products that need such high density recording technology.