In 2019, Microsoft announced Project Silica with the aim of creating a data storage system that can last thousands of years. Data stored in the form of physical disks, magnetic tapes and HDD storage will not last long due to the limitations of the life of the materials used. Microsoft today announced the development of Project Silica with it now being proven to be able to store data as expected.
Project Silica stores 4.8 TB of data in a 12×12 cm piece of borosilicate glass with a thickness of only 2mm. In tests conducted, data will be safely stored for 10,000 years if stored at a temperature of 290 ºC. If stored at room temperature, it can be up to several hundred times longer.
Data is stored in phase voxels (phase voxels) in the glass surface similar to the grooves on the surface of a CD but in a three-dimensional structure. The phase voxels are engraved on the glass surface using a femtosecond laser. As a result, each piece of Project Silica can store up to 2,000 books or 5,000 movies at UHD resolution.
Researchers are now using borosilicate glass, which is cheaper and easier to produce than the fused silica used previously. This is the same glass used in microwave oven mirrors and durable glass products like Pyrex.
In addition to Project Silica, there are also HoloMem and SPhotonix who say their storage systems can last a long time. In the case of SPhotonix, their 5D glass storage is said to last for 13.8 billion years.
Project Silica's latest study was published in the journal Nature.
