What is a compact disc made up of?

A CD is a fairly simple piece of plastic, about four one-hundredths (4/100) of an inch (1.2 mm) thick. Most of a CD consists of an injection-molded piece of clear polycarbonate plastic. During manufacturing, this plastic is impressed with microscopic bumps arranged as a single, continuous, extremely long spiral track of data. Once the clear piece of polycarbonate is formed, a thin, reflective aluminum layer is sputtered onto the disc, covering the bumps. Then a thin acrylic layer is sprayed over the aluminum to protect it. The label is then printed onto the acrylic. A CD has a single spiral track of data, circling from the inside of the disc to the outside. If you could stretch the spiraled music track on a CD into a straight line, it would be nearly 3.5 miles (5 km) long.

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Charles Mims
http://www.the-sandbox.org
 
 
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