A research team in Austria has created the world’s smallest QR code, small enough to sit on a single bacterium, and got it verified by Guinness World Records.
Scientists at TU Wien, working with data storage company Cerabyte, engraved a QR code measuring just 1.98 square micrometers—about 37 percent the size of the previous record holder. The code is so tiny it can only be read using an electron microscope .
The QR code covers an area smaller than most bacteria. Each pixel measures just 49 nanometers—roughly ten times smaller than the wavelength of visible light, making the code completely invisible to optical microscopes. The team milled the pattern into a thin ceramic layer using focused ion beams .
Professor Paul Mayrhofer from the Institute of Materials Science and Technology at TU Wien led the research, with key contributions from Erwin Peck and Balint Hajas. The record was verified by the University of Vienna and officially entered into the Guinness Book of Records .
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Modern data storage has a lifespan problem. Magnetic and electronic drives lose information after just a few years without constant power, cooling, and regular data migration. Data centers consume enormous amounts of electricity, contributing significantly to global carbon emissions .
The team used thin ceramic films—similar to coatings used on high-performance cutting tools—because they remain stable under extreme conditions. Using focused ion beams, they carved the QR code into this durable material. When examined with an electron microscope, the pattern could be read reliably .
This storage method is incredibly dense. On a single A4 sheet of paper, more than 2 terabytes of data could be stored using this technique. Unlike conventional media, ceramic data carriers require no energy to preserve information and can last for centuries or even millennia .
The technology remains in the laboratory phase. The team now aims to increase writing speeds, test other materials, and develop scalable manufacturing processes for industrial use. They also need to figure out how to write complex data structures—beyond simple QR codes—into ceramic films .
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“We live in the information age, yet we store our knowledge in media that are astonishingly short-lived,” said researcher Alexander Kirnbauer. Ancient civilizations carved messages into stone that survive today. Ceramic storage offers a similar approach—writing data into stable, inert materials that remain accessible for future generations without energy input. This research points toward a more climate-friendly data future where information can be stored permanently and securely .
