# Holy Crap! Data Storage Using a SINGLE Photon! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 23, 2007, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103 "2007-01-23T16:06:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Praetor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/58956e/32.png) [@Praetor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Praetor)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/21 "2007-01-24T17:31:18Z")
I scanned the Physical Review Letters paper linked to in the link, and it certainly seems to me that the media contact has some misconceptions about what is occurring in the experiment. First off, each pulse may only be 1 photon, but the image was obtained by collecting many pulses for each pixel and scanning the detector over each individual pixel. So to say that the entire image is contained in one photon is a gross simplification, since you can’t possibly obtain the image from a single photon. Second, they slowed down the pulses (which were 2 nanoseconds long) by 5 nanoseconds. So don’t think that you’ll be replacing any kind of permanent storage media anytime soon. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/22 "2007-01-24T19:03:37Z")
> [@](#): > > I scanned the Physical Review Letters paper linked to in the link, and it certainly seems to me that the media contact has some misconceptions about what is occurring in the experiment. I think that they were going for hyperbole, as such publicity frequently does. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/23 "2007-01-24T21:27:39Z")
The Scientific American report is a lot clearer: [How Can a Single Photon Produce a Whole Image? Short Answer: It Can’t](http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleid=5116CF53-E7F2-99DF-3B64CF41CFBB5B91) ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/24 "2007-01-25T09:24:09Z")
Still, imagine the possibilities if these leads to a storage method for data where 1 bit = 1 photon. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_C](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Captain\_C](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_C)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/25 "2007-01-25T10:09:59Z")
[QUOTE=MEBuckner] 'Course y’all realize this amazing new technology will probably mainly be used to store even-vaster amounts of porn. [/QUOTE] Mmmm, photon porn… ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/26 "2007-01-25T11:10:23Z")
[QUOTE=Captain\_C] Mmmm, photon porn… [/QUOTE] Gives you a hadron just thinking about it. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2007, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/27 "2007-01-25T12:15:22Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] It looks as though this is some kind of play on the double-slit experiment, where a single photon behaves as if it passed through both slits at the same time. [/QUOTE] Good for storing Great Debates (or porn with twins). ---
**Author:** ![ReuvenB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@ReuvenB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReuvenB)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2007, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103/28 "2007-01-26T16:05:50Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] Gives you a hadron just thinking about it. [/QUOTE] You owe me a new monitor. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-crap-data-storage-using-a-single-photon/389103.md?page=1)