A*STAR DSI in Collaboration With Taiwan’s National Tsing Hua University …

Singapore’s Data Storage Institute (DSI), a research institute of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), has signed a collaboration agreement with Taiwan’s National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) to pursue research on flexible cable which will be assembled into the world’s first 5mm hybrid HDD, targeted to launch at the end of the year.

HDD manufacturers are constantly trying to push the limits of areal density to enable more information to be recorded on the device. In turn, this drives up the track density which places pressure on the track mis-registration (TMR). Adjustments have to be made on the TMR as read and write errors affect the accuracy of the data stored. If TMR becomes too large, stored data may be unreadable or cause data on subsequent tracks to be erased. Besides meeting the demand for high areal density, manufacturers also need to develop HDDs that are lightweight, thin, energy-efficient and robust for consumer usage.

As part of the agreement, both research partners will jointly develop a method to study the non-linear dynamic behaviours of flexible cable, quantify its effects on the TMR, as well as to integrate software codes developed from the project into DSI’s HDD mechanical platform for system testing and evaluation. The objective of the research is to develop a flexible cable design for HDD which is able to achieve high track density.

"DSI is constantly trying to refine key HDD components that can be incorporated into the iconic thin hybrid drive which is in the making. This agreement underscores DSI’s commitment to developing high-value performance technologies suited for commercialisation and mass production. We have garnered strong support from our industry partners and our collaboration with NTHU aims to further enhance the synergy between DSI and overseas universities with specialities in data storage," said Dr Pantelis Alexopoulos, DSI’s executive director.

"Ranked one of the top hundred engineering schools in the world, NTHU’s College of Engineering is devoted to cultivating future engineering leaders for the society equipped with solid scientific and technical background, well-versed in technology, humanity, social commitment and international view. Integrative approach in multidisciplinary research has allowed our faculty to conduct engineering research and produce results that are globally recognised. Leveraging on DSI’s calibrated HDD platform, NTHU’s experts in the field of high performance flexible cable analysis and characterisation are able to validate their theoretical and engineering research success. We strongly believe that the newly-designed flexible cable will prove to be superior and a powerful addition to DSI’s HDD," said Prof Nyan-Hwa Daniel Tai, NTHU College of Engineering’s acting dean.