Margaret E. Best

High K/sub u/ materials approach to 100 Gbits/in/sup 2/

High K/sub u/, uniaxial magnetocrystalline anisotropy, materials are generally attractive for ultrahigh density magnetic recording applications as they allow smaller, thermally stable media grains. Prominent candidates are rare-earth transition metals (Co/sub 5/Sm,...), and tetragonal intermetallic compounds (L1/sub 0/ phases FePt, CoPtY,...), which have 20-40 times higher K/sub u/ than todays hexagonal Co-alloy based media. This allows for about 3 times smaller grain diameters, D, and a potential 10-fold areal density increase (/spl prop/1/D/sup 2/), well beyond the currently projected 40-100 Gbits/in/sup 2/ mark, Realization of such densities will depend on a large number of factors, not all related to solving media microstructure problems, In particular it is at present not known how to record into such media, which may require write fields in the order of 10-100 kOe. Despite this unsolved problem, there is considerable interest in high Ku alternative media, both for longitudinal and perpendicular recording. Activities in this area will be reviewed and data on sputtered and evaporated thin FePt films, with coercivities exceeding 10000 Oe will be presented.

Antiferromagnetically coupled magnetic media layers for thermally stable high-density recording

We describe a magnetic recording media composed of antiferromagnetically coupled (AFC) magnetic recording layers as an approach to extend areal densities of longitudinal media beyond the predicted superparamagnetic limit. The recording medium is made up of two ferromagnetic layers separated by a nonmagnetic layer whose thickness is tuned to couple the layers antiferromagnetically. For such a structure, the effective areal moment density (Mrt) of the composite structure is the difference between the ferromagnetic layers allowing the effective magnetic thickness to scale independently of the physical thickness of the media. Experimental realizations of AFC media demonstrate that thermally stable, low-Mrt media suitable for high-density recording can be achieved.

Nanoscale patterning of magnetic islands by imprint lithography using a flexible mold

A nanomolding process for producing 55-nm-diameter magnetic islands over 3-cm-wide areas is described. A master pattern of SiO2 pillars is used to form a polymeric mold, which is in turn used to mold a photopolymer resist film. This latter film is used as a resist for etching SiO2, yielding a pattern of pillars. Finally, an 11-nm-CoPt multilayer is deposited. Magnetic force microscopy reveals that the film on top of each pillar is a magnetically isolated single domain that switches independently.

Recording performance of high-density patterned perpendicular magnetic media

Isolated tracks of magnetic single-domain islands have been fabricated by patterning perpendicular Co70Cr18Pt12 continuous films using focused-ion-beam lithography, reaching areal densities as high as ∼200 Gbit/in2. We demonstrate writing and reading of individual islands using a quasistatic write/read tester. We present results on transition position jitter and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for patterned media and compare them with those on equivalent unpatterned strips of the media. We observe that patterning dramatically reduces jitter and improves SNR, which is independent of track width. Moreover, the synchronization requirements needed for writing bits in patterned media was investigated on a single row of islands revealing a significant “write window,” where islands can be written correctly, of about half the island period.

Writing and reading perpendicular magnetic recording media patterned by a focused ion beam

We have written and read bit patterns on arrays of square islands cut with a focused ion beam into granular perpendicular magnetic recording media. Using a static write–read tester, we have written square-wave bit patterns on arrays of islands with sizes between 60 and 230 nm, matching the recording linear density to the pattern period. These measurements reveal the onset of single-domain behavior for islands smaller than 130 nm, in agreement with magnetic force microscope images. The recording performance of patterned regions is systematically compared to that of unpatterned regions.

Ion induced magnetization reorientation in Co/Pt multilayers for patterned media

Co/Pt multilayer films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and large out-of-plane coercivities of 3.9 - 8.5 kOe have been found to undergo a spin reorientation transition from out-of-plane to in-plane upon irradiation with 700 keV nitrogen ions. X-ray reflectivity experiments show that the multilayer structure gets progressively disrupted with increasing ion dose, providing direct evidence for local atomic displacements at the Co/Pt interfaces. This effectively destroys the magnetic interface anisotropy, which was varied by about a factor of two, between KS@ 0.4 erg/cm2 and KS@ 0.85 erg/cm2 for two particular films. The dose required to initiate spin-reorientation, 6x1014 N+/cm2 and 1.5x1015 N+/cm2, respectively, scales with KS. It is roughly equal to the number of Co interface atoms per unit interface area contributing to KS.

Dynamic coercivity measurements in thin film recording media using a contact write/read tester

Thermally activated magnetization reversal processes become manifest in the dependence of the remanent coercivity on the time during which a magnetic field is applied opposite to the initial magnetization direction. They have important consequences for the long term stability and short time writeability of future high density recording media. In this paper, we report on a new experiment using a contact write/read tester to study the time dependence of the remanent coercivity over more than 10 orders of magnitude (from 6 ns to >60 s). Remanence coercivity and signal decay measurements of a CoPtCr recording medium with 5.5 nm thickness are presented.

Nanoscale replication for scanning probe data storage

Recently, there have been significant advances in demonstrating the possible application of scanning probe techniques for high density data storage. While many obstacles have yet to be overcome, one of the more promising applications of such devices is for very high density read‐only disk drives. Such an application requires the means to pattern and replicate nanometer scale features over macroscopic dimensions. We have developed a technique for both mastering and replicating data patterns for use in such a device at a density 100 times that of current read‐only disks. The process consists of using electron beam lithography to write data features as small as 50 nm and a photopolymerization process to faithfully replicate the written marks.

Magnetic characterization and recording properties of patterned Co/sub 70/Cr/sub 18/Pt/sub 12/ perpendicular media

A lithographically patterned magnetic medium is one of the proposed routes to magnetic recording at a density beyond that thought to be possible using conventional recording media due to thermal instability caused by superparamagnetism. Using a focused ion beam to pattern a granular Co/sub 70/Cr/sub 18/Pt/sub 12/ film, we have fabricated sub-80-nm size islands that are single domain and with a narrowed switching field distribution and an enhanced thermal stability. Magnetic isolation of the islands is shown to be a result of vanishing of magnetic remanence and coercivity in the irradiated region and not a result of sputtering. Recording measurements using a quasi-static giant magnetoresistive head demonstrate the sensitivity to detect single 80-nm islands. The readback jitter from the patterned region is dramatically reduced compared to that measured for continuous media at the same linear density.

Growth, structural and magnetic properties of high coercivity Co/Pt multilayers

Electron beam evaporated Co/Pt multilayers {[Co(tCo nm)/Pt(1 nm)]10, 0.2 250 °C show fine-grained MFM features on the sub-100-nm length scale indicating reversal dominated by localized switching of small clusters. High-resolution cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (TEM) with elemental analysis shows columnar grains extending throughout the multilayer stack. Co depletion and structural defects at the grain boundaries provide a mechanism for exchange decoupl...