We are seeking a motivated student assistant for a project on DNA data storage. By 2025, the volume of all digital data in the world is expected to exceed 180 zettabytes. Furthermore, this amount of data is growing exponentially and will soon overwhelm all commercially available methods of data storage. DNA molecules have a theoretical information density of about 1 exabyte per mm3, which is eight orders of magnitude higher than currently available commercial methods. In addition, DNA molecules degenerate with a half-life of about 500 years, which makes them particularly suitable for long-term storage of large amounts of data.
For data storage, DNA molecules are synthesized with calculated nucleotide sequences. Reading the data is accomplished through the process of DNA sequencing. Both processes are prone to errors. Therefore, it is necessary to protect the data to be stored using appropriate error-detecting and -correcting codes. Hence, TNT is conducting research on corresponding encoding methods. As part of these efforts, we are seeking assistance within the context of a Hiwi position.
Readings:
Contact person: Stephanie Kristin Schröder
