When it comes to 3D printing, the sky is the limit. As 3D printing technology continues to advance, applications can be as far reaching as airplane and automobile parts to medical devices and even anatomically correct, biocompatible models. Although 3D printing technology is developing at a rapid pace, the technology itself is not new. It emerged in the 1980s as a means of creating rapid prototypes. In recent years the applications for 3D printed models have evolved with the available hardware, software, and printable materials. Evolving technology, paired with the creative and innovative minds of scientists, engineers, and physicians, has been the launching pad for developments within 3D printing technology specific to healthcare. One way 3D printing technology is poised to create better patient outcomes is in creating an anatomically and patient-specific models to aid in surgery and medical procedures. With the capability to 3D ...
If you were trying to figure out how to increase data storage space on a hard drive, you’d naturally think of polymers as a solution, right?
No? You mean, you’d think of pushing together magnetic dots on a metal surface so that more printed zeros and ones are pressed together and more data could be stored? That’s so last week.
There’s a problem with the method described above. As data-storage demand increases and the space between the magnetic dots decreases to meet that demand, any further decrease in the space between the dots threatens instability because of the dots’ magnetic fields.
University of Texas chemists and engineers have devised a solution to that problem, and the key was self-assembling polymers, or block co-polymers, reports Extreme Tech. Their technique has helped improve hard drive storage capacity fivefold.
The researchers from the university used directed heat to coax the block co-polymers — which are made from more than one bondable molecule — to reorganize themselves onto a metal surface into a regular pattern. Usually, block co-polymers follow a pattern, and the magnetic dots on a hard drive provided the needed guide for them to fall into just the right place.
The co-polymers in turn provided enough of a shield from the magnetic fields so that the dots could be pushed closer together than their normal spacing without causing data corruption. Extreme Tech explains how the team overcame some hurdles:
Though the polymers can reassemble fairly quickly, as well as follow the hard drive’s natural guide, orientation of the dots was still an issue. However, the team was able to create a special top coat to help the polymer form using a proper orientation, and is simply activated with a bit of heat. Because of this, the polymers are able to orient themselves in smaller patterns, which in turn allows for more storage space.
Until recently, this method — known as directed self-assembly — has been able to double hard drive storage capacity. But the university professors and students have refined the process so that the block co-polymers rearrange into the smallest dots yet, prompting the fivefold capacity increase. In addition, the team set a record for how fast the polymers form into correct patterns: 30 seconds.
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