AN IMAGE has been stored within the atoms of a single molecule.
Bing Fung and colleagues at the University of Oklahoma used electromagnetic pulses to alter the spins of 19 hydrogen atoms in a liquid crystal molecule. They encoded a 1024-bit black and white image within the differing spin states of the atoms, then read the image back using nuclear magnetic resonance to measure the tiny differences in the energy absorbed by the atoms (
Fung hopes the technique could one day be used to pack massive amounts of digital information into a tiny space.
To continue reading this article, subscribe to receive access to all of newscientist.com, including 20 years of archive content.