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Blu-ray manufacturers test new materials
Sabic Innovative Plastics is currently testing six different optical-quality grades of Noryl for a possible replacement of the polycarbonate used during the production of Blu-ray discs.
Because data is written so close to the surface of a Blu-ray disc, it is not required that the material on the surface be transparent, as is the case with current DVD production. Greg Harley, an engineer at Sabic commented, "With DVDs, the laser is reading through a substrate, so the material has to be transparent. You can use an opaque material, or any color you want, with a Blu-ray disc."
Noryl has many advantages over polycarbonate, including that it does not absorb moisture and can be cheaper to produce. This means that not only can certain steps of the manufacturing process be eliminated, but also that the overall cost of materials can be reduced. Both allow for huge savings on large scale production
Story filed 06.04.08
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