FujiFilm and IBM Develop 50TB Native 3592 JF Tape Cartridge for TS1170 Drive

FujiFilm Corp. and IBM Corp. announced the development of a 50TB native tape storage system, featuring the highest native data tape cartridge capacity ⁽¹⁾.

FujiFilm has commenced production of this cartridge for use with IBM’s new enterprise tape drive, the TS1170. The 6th-gen IBM 3592 JF tape cartridge incorporates a newly developed technology featuring fine hybrid magnetic particles to enable higher data storage capacity.

TS1170 tape drive

Innovations in achieving 50TB native capacity
FujiFilm has succeeded in achieving this cartridge capacity by evolving the technologies developed in previous tape generations. This involved enhancing both the areal recording density (the amount of data that can be recorded per square inch) and the overall recording area (the surface area capable of recording data).

• Nanoparticle design technology: Fine hybrid magnetic particles have been newly developed by combining the technologies used in the next-ge Strontium Ferrite (SrFe) magnetic particles and the Barium Ferrite (BaFe) particles that are currently used in high-capacity storage tapes. Reduction in the size of the magnetic particles and enhancement in their magnetic properties significantly improves the areal recording density.

• High-dispersion technology for magnetic particles prevents the aggregation of individual ultrafine magnetic particles and allows for a more even dispersion of the particles.

• Improved thin layer coating technology achieves a more uniform and smoother tape surface, resulting in improved signal-to-noise ratio.

• A 15% longer tape/data cartridge compared to the previous fifth generation ⁽²⁾ is realized by using a thinner and stronger base film, which is for the support of the magnetic layer.

AI enhanced analytics are helping organizations derive value from exponentially increasing volumes of big data and prompting the need for long term, cost-effective, high-capacity storage. With the TS1170 drive and 3592 JF tape cartridge, data-intensive organizations including growing cloud service providers can take advantage of the increased capacity of 3592 JF for long-term retention and security of these massive data sets.

Kei Nagata, deputy general manager, industrial products division, FujiFilm, says: “With 50TB native capacity, 2.5x the capacity of the previous highest-capacity tape cartridges ⁽²⁾, FujiFilm believes this breakthrough demonstrates the future potential of tape technology. The IBM 3592 JF tape cartridge is yet another milestone in many years of joint R&D with IBM, and we are honored to be the manufacturer of this product.“

Alistair Symon, VP, storage systems development, IBM, says: “The advanced technology in the IBM 3592 JF tape cartridge will enable customers to realize high densities, which facilitates storage cost optimization while maintaining performance and time to data. This is the first tape storage medium with 50TB native capacity, and it demonstrates tape’s viability as an optimal choice for data protection, active archives and long-term retention in scientific data, industrial data collection and cloud service provider environments.” 

The innovation of the IBM 3592 JF tape cartridge, only available on the new IBM TS1170 Tape Drive, provides the ability to store up to 150TB of data on a single tape cartridge with a 3:1 compression ratio, enabling clients to achieve high storage on the TS1170.

⁽¹⁾ Based on comparison of available tape cartridge technology from LTO format with LTO-9 capacity of 18TB and existing IBM Enterprise tape cartridge JE capacity of a maximum 20TB, as of August 29, 2023.
⁽²⁾ The 5th-gen 3592 JE Tape cartridge.