TDK Begin Shipping Mass Produced Blu-Ray Discs

TDK Corporation has begun shipping mass production samples of its bare, cartridge-free BD-R (write-once) and BD-RE (rewritable) Blu-ray Discs. The four new products include the BD-R25 (single-sided, single-layer, 25GB) and BD-R50 (single-sided, dual-layer, 50GB) write-once type discs, as well as the BD-RE25 (single-sided, single-layer, 25GB) and BD-RE50 (single-sided, dual-layer, 50GB) rewritable discs.

Mass production for the retail market will begin at TDK’s Chikumagawa factory, which specializes in optical media, when final licensing is issued.

Driven by the continuously expanding data storage requirements of today’s digital society, as well as the rapid emergence of high-definition broadcasting, demand has grown for discs that achieve larger capacities and higher-speed recording than previous formats. The BD-R and BD-RE products introduced by TDK are bare, cartridge-free discs that rise to the challenge by delivering larger capacities and high speed recording without requiring a cumbersome cartridge to ensure reliability.

For the Blu-ray Disc, which utilizes ultra-high density recording to achieve its large capacities, scratches or dirt on the disc surface can cause data errors. To ensure reliable performance, the Blu-ray Disc was first introduced to the Japanese market in a protective cartridge. The BD-R and BD-RE Blu-ray Discs that TDK is now launching utilize DURABIS 2, the company’s exclusive hard coating technology. DURABIS 2 gives the recording surface extremely high resistance to scratches, fingerprint smudges and other dirt, thus eliminating the need for a protective cartridge.

TDK’s proprietary high-precision Spin Coating manufacturing process is utilized to form each Blu-ray Disc’s cover layer, which resides atop the recording layer. Because Spin Coating creates a cover layer with nano-uniform smoothness, exceptionally stable recording and playback characteristics are realized.

The write-once type BD-R discs incorporate inorganic recording material, which is entirely different from the organic dye used in previous write-once discs. Because the recording layer is not affected by light, the discs are exceptionally suitable for long-term archiving. The rewritable type BD-RE discs utilize a high-sensitivity phase-change recording material that displays stability and a low error rate, even after 10,000 overwrites.

In addition, the single-sided, dual-layer 50GB TDK Blu-ray Discs utilize high-precision stacking technology to achieve precise formation of disc layers. Using this technology, which was developed over a number of years, the upper layer (Layer 1) and lower layer (Layer 0) are combined to realize stable recording and playback characteristics.

TDK’s massive R&D efforts in advanced optical disc technology have enabled creating the world’s first 25GB and 50GB high-capacity discs capable of 2X recording speed. TDK is confident that the BD-R and BD-RE, freed from the confines of a cartridge, will find widespread consumer acceptance by delivering unprecedented capacities and speeds.

Main Features of TDK BD-R and BD-RE Blu-ray Discs

1. Exclusive DURABIS 2 coating designed for bare Blu-ray Discs provides significantly greater resistance to scratches, fingerprints and dirt, ensuring reliability without a cartridge.
2. Proprietary high-precision Spin Coating creates a cover layer with uniform smoothness to the nano-level, realizing stable recording and playback.
3. The write-once type BD-R media utilizes inorganic recording layer material. Because the material is unaffected by exposure to light, it’s ideal for archiving applications.
4. The rewritable BD-RE utilizes high-sensitivity phase-change recording material that maintains stable characteristics even after as many as 10,000 rewrites.
5. High-precision stacking technology precisely overlays disc layers. This realizes stable performance characteristics for the upper layer (Layer 1) and lower layer (Layer 0) of TDK’s single-sided, dual-layer 50GB Blu-ray Discs.