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videodisc, also spelled videodisk, rigid circular plate of either metal or plastic used to record video and audio signals for playback. It resembles a phonograph record and can be played on a disc machine attached to a conventional television receiver. There are two major classes of videodiscs: magnetic and nonmagnetic.
The magnetic videodisc has an oxide-coated surface onto which input signals are recorded as magnetic patterns in spiral tracks. The video heads of the playback unit pick up these impressions and produce electrical signals that are converted back into pictures and sounds (see also magnetic recording).
Nonmagnetic videodiscs are available in two basic types. One is produced by a mechanical recording system analogous to that used in the manufacture of phonograph records, whereas the other involves laser technology. The mechanically recorded disc is a metallic plate with spiral grooves of V-shaped cross section. The pickup of the recorded information from the disk is accomplished electrically by a stylus. A metallic layer on the rear of the stylus detects capacitance variations as the stylus passes along the valleys and peaks of the grooves.
The laser videodisc is a metal or plastic disc on which input signals are recorded as a sequence of coded holes that were originally written onto a master disc by using a high-power laser. Copies are made by contact printing the master onto discs of the same size. During playback the signals are read out with a low-power helium-neon laser that is focused by a lens to form a tiny spot on a disc. Variations in the amount of light reflected from the disc are sensed by a photodetector. Electronic circuitry translates the light signals into video and audio signals for the television receiver.
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