A workable atomic memory that uses individual atoms to store information has been developed by physicists, representing a density equivalent to 250 terabits of data per square inch.

In the experiment, each single silicon atom was added or removed from a block of twenty others using a scanning tunnelling microscope.

According to Tom Theis, director of physical sciences at IBM’s T.J. Watson Research Center, it may one day be possible to use such techniques to mimic the memory capabilities of biological systems such as DNA.