Final answer:
Optical storage devices store information in laser-created pits and read it by using a laser beam to interpret the pattern of reflected and non-reflected light as binary code (0s and 1s). The digital signal is then converted into an analog signal for further processing.
Step-by-step explanation:
Optical storage devices, like CDs and DVDs, store and read information using a digital pattern and laser technology. Information is stored in the form of laser-created pits on their surface, resembling a pattern of 0s and 1s, referred to as binary code. To read this stored information, the optical storage device uses an inexpensive solid-state infrared laser beam which it scatters from pits as the device spins.
This process reveals their digital pattern and the information encoded upon them. Bumps and pits on the CD are distinguished through focused coherent light. The laser beam strikes the bumps and pits, light that hits a bump is merely reflected and interpreted as a '1', while light that hits a 'pit' destructively interferes which results in no light return. This lack of reflected light is interpreted as a '0'.
The resulting digital signal is then converted into an analog signal for further processing and interpretation. Hence, through the use of laser-created pits and the reflection or lack thereof of laser beams, optical storage devices are able to successfully read and interpret information.
Learn more about Reading Information from Optical Storage Devices