A compact disc [sometimes spelled disk] (CD) is a small, portable, round medium made of molded polymer (close in size

to the floppy disk) for electronically recording, storing, and playing back audio, video, text, and other information in digital form. Tape cartridges and CDs generally replaced the phonograph record for playing back music. At home, CDs have tended to replace the tape cartridge although the latter is still widely used in cars and portable playback devices. Initially, CDs were read-only, but newer technology allows users to record as well. CDs will probably continue to be popular for music recording and playback. A newer technology, the digital versatile disc (DVD), stores much more in the same space and is used for playing back movies.

Physical details:
Diagram of CD layers. A. A polycarbonate disc layer has the data encoded by using bumps. B. A shiny layer reflects the laser. C. A layer of lacquer protects the shiny layer. D. Artwork is screen printed on the top of the disc. E. A laser beam reads the CD and is reflected back to a sensor, which converts it into electronic data A CD is made from 1.2 millimetres (0.047 in) thick, polycarbonate plastic and weighs 15 20 grams.[22] From the centre outward, components are: the centre spindle hole (15 mm), the first-transition area (clamping ring), the clamping area (stacking ring), the second-transition area (mirror band), the program (data) area, and the rim. The inner

program area occupies a radius from 25 to 58 mm A thin layer of aluminium or, more rarely, gold is applied to the surface making it reflective. The metal is protected by a film of lacquer normally spin coated directly on the reflective layer. The label is printed on the lacquer layer, usually by screen printing or offset printing. CD data are stored as a series of tiny indentations known as "pits", encoded in a spiral track moulded into the top of the polycarbonate layer. The areas between pits are known as "lands". Each pit is approximately 100 nm deep by 500 nm wide, and varies from 850 nm to 3.5 m in length. The distance between the tracks, the pitch, is 1.6 m. Scanning velocity is 1.21.4 m/s (constant linear velocity) equivalent to approximately 500 rpm at the inside of the disc, and approximately 200 rpm at the outside edge. (A disc played from beginning to end slows down during playback.) The program area is 86.05 cm and the length of the recordable spiral is (86.05 cm2 / 1.6 m) = 5.38 km. With a scanning speed of 1.2 m/s, the playing time is 74 minutes, or 650 MB of data on a CD-ROM. A disc with data packed slightly more densely is tolerated by most players (though some old ones fail). Using a linear velocity of 1.2 m/s and a track pitch of 1.5 m yields a playing time of 80 minutes, or a data capacity of 700 MB. Even higher capacities on non-standard discs (up to 99 minutes) are available at least as recordable, but generally the tighter the tracks are squeezed, the worse the compatibility. The optical chip extracted from a CD player. The three dark rectangles are photosensitive, and read the data from the disk. Electronic tracking keeps the laser beam centered on the middle area. A CD is read by focusing a 780 nm wavelength (near infrared) semiconductor laser through the bottom of the polycarbonate layer. The change in height between pits and lands results in a difference in the way the light is reflected. By measuring the intensity change with a photodiode, the data can be read from the disc.

The pits and lands themselves do not directly represent the zeros and ones of binary data. Instead, non-return-to-zero, inverted encoding is used: a change from pit to land or land to pit indicates a one, while no change indicates a series of zeros. There must be at least two

and no more than ten zeros between each one, which is defined by the length of the pit. This in turn is decoded by reversing the eight-to-fourteen modulation used in mastering the disc, and then reversing the Cross-Interleaved Reed-Solomon Coding, finally revealing the raw data stored on the disc. CDs are susceptible to damage from both normal use and environmental exposure. Pits are much closer to the label side of a disc, enabling defects and contaminants on the clear side to be out of focus during playback. Consequently, CDs are more likely to suffer damage on the label side of the disk. Scratches on the clear side can be repaired by refilling them with similar refractive plastic, or by careful polishing Disc shapes and diameters The digital data on a CD begins at the center of the disc and proceeds toward the edge, which allows adaptation to the different size formats available. Standard CDs are available in two sizes. By far, the most common is 120 millimetres (4.7 in) in diameter, with a 74- or 80-minute audio capacity and a 650 or 700 MB data capacity. This capacity was reportedly specified by Sony executive Norio Ohga so as to be able to contain the entirety of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony on one disc.[7]This diameter has been adopted by subsequent formats, including Super Audio CD, DVD, HD DVD, and Blu-ray Disc. 80 mm discs ("Mini CDs") were originally designed for CD singles and can hold up to 24 minutes of music or 210 MB of data but never became popular.[citation needed] Today, nearly every single is released on a 120 mm CD, called a Maxi single.[citation needed] Novelty CDs are also available in numerous shapes and sizes, and are used chiefly for marketing. A common variant is the "business card" CD, a single with portions removed at the top and bottom making the disk resemble a business card. Physical size Audio Capacity CD-ROM Data Capacity Note

120 mm

7499 min

650870 MB

Standard size

80 mm

2124 min

185210 MB

Mini-CD size

85x54 mm - 86x64 mm ~6 min

10-65 MB

"Business card" size