Scientists have created the world’s smallest QR code, measuring just 3.07 × 10⁻⁹ square inches (1.98 square micrometers). The data can be stored for thousands of years and is so small that you need an electron microscope to see it.
Each pixel in a QR code is just 49 nanometers in diameter, even smaller than a bacterium, securing its place in the Guinness Book of World Records. It was created by etching a grid into a thin ceramic film using a focused ion beam. This is approximately 37% of the size of previous world record holders and approximately 0.0000004% of the size of a standard 0.8 square inch (2 cm2) QR code.
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The creation of such small data storage units opens up the possibility of extremely high storage densities. Scientists at the Vienna University of Technology in Austria, who developed the QR code in collaboration with data storage company Cerabyte, estimate that more than 2 terabytes of data can fit on the surface area of an A4 (8 1/2 x 11) sheet of paper with etched pixels. That’s more data than most consumer laptops can store.
In contrast, the same area covered by a version 1 QR code of 0.8 square inches (2 cm2) can only hold about 2.5 kilobytes, the equivalent of a page of plain text.
QR codes can store thousands of years of data
Despite their record-breaking size, the QR code is even more durable, the researchers said.
“Structures on the micrometer scale are not uncommon today. It is even possible to create patterns made of individual atoms,” Paul Meyerhofer, head of the Thin Film Materials Science Research Group at the Vienna University of Technology, said in a statement. “But that alone doesn’t give you stable, readable code.”
Magnetic storage solutions like hard drives and solid state drives tend to degrade after about 10 years, while optical media like CDs and DVDs have a lifespan of only 30 years. As a result, all of today’s digital data is at risk of being lost unless a more stable solution is found.
Because of this potential for degradation, the research team decided to create QR codes using a film of chromium nitride, a ceramic compound. Ceramics are used in high-performance cutting tools because they are known to remain stable under extreme conditions. Scientists said that data stored in QR codes can be stored for thousands of years.
“With ceramic storage media, we are pursuing an approach similar to ancient cultures, whose inscriptions can still be read today,” Alexander Kirnbauer, senior scientist at the Thin Film Materials Science Research Group at the Vienna University of Technology, said in a statement. “We write information into a stable, inert material that will stand the test of time and be fully accessible to future generations.”
A greener solution to AI dependence
Another advantage of small ceramic QR codes is that they do not require energy input or cooling to store data. In contrast, data centers require constant electricity to power servers and maintain cooling systems to prevent damage from overheating. According to the International Energy Agency, it will account for approximately 1.5% of global electricity consumption in 2024.
There is an urgent need for greener alternatives to the large, carbon-intensive data centers we rely on. Especially as we become increasingly dependent on artificial intelligence (AI) as it rapidly expands. Market research firm IDC predicts that the amount of data the world generates annually will triple from 173.4 zettabytes (173.4 billion TB) in 2024 to 527.5 zb in 2029.
The team is currently looking at other materials for QR codes, techniques to improve writing speeds, and industrial-scale manufacturing methods. We also want to see if data structures more complex than QR codes can be written to and read from ceramic films.
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