New longitudinal recording media CoxNiyCrzfrom high rate static magnetron sputtering system

Three new magnetic alloys A:Co64.2Ni27.4Cr8.4. B:Co74.1Ni15.9Cr10.0, and C:Co82Ni18were used as targets to sputter thin films with coercivities up to 1015 Oe, 926 Oe, and 825 Oe respectively. Chromium films were used as the base layer. With a base pressure below 2 × 10^-7torr and chromium thickness of 2500Å, the following magnetic characteristics of alloys A and B were obtained: Hc>900 Oe, Brδ>530 G-µm, S>78%, S* > 93%, S/N (at 5MHz) > 45dB and D50> 17KBPI. X-ray diffraction measurements indicate the (1011) texture of CoNiCr films is the reason for the high coercivity and squareness ratio. This orientation may result because the in-plane atom density for Co alloys HCP(1011) and Cr BCC     

High density recording with perpendicular Co-Cr-Nb media and ring heads

Effective double layer structure was investigated by adding Nb to the sputtering source of Co-Cr thin film perpendicular magnetic recording tapes. The output from the tapes was measured with a ring head through to the short wavelength, λ50=0.19 μm (D50=267KFRPI).     

Properties of amorphous alloy films mainly composed of Co--Nb

Amorphous alloy films, mainly composed of Co-Nb, have been studied by radio frequency (RF) sputtering. These amorphous films having small magnetostriction show excellent soft magnetic properties after the magnetic annealing we have developed. One of them with the composition of (Co83.5Fe2)92/85.5Nb8was found to have very high saturation magnetizationB_{s} = 14300(gauss). The effects of additives such as Zr to the alloys have been investigated and amorphous films having high crystallization temperature as well as high saturation magnetization were successfully obtained. These amorphous films show fairly good wear and corrosion resistance as well as excellent thermal stability of the magnetic properties.     

High coercivity sputter-deposited maghemite thin-film disk

The fabrication and read-write characteristics of a high-coercivity sputter-deposited maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) thin-film disk medium is discussed. By employing a low sputtering gas pressure, severe internal strain is introduced into the films. This internal strain markedly increases coercivity. Furthermore, the films are composed of fine crystallites (300-400 Å in diameter), which result in extremely low media noise. A high coercivity (1060 Oe) γ- (Fe0.954Co0.02Ti0.02Cu0.015)2O3thin-film disk medium with a thickness of 0.095 μm exhibited superior read-write characteristics (e.g., a 2493 FRPM recording density D50and a 42 dB signal-to-noise ratio). These results show that sputter-deposited maghemite films have a promising potential for use as high-density disk media.     

Magnetic properties and structure of cobalt-platinum thin films

The magnetic properties of RF sputtered Co-Pt alloy thin films were studied as a function of Pt content from 0 to 80 at%. At room temperature, ferromagnetic films were obtained in the range 0-32 and 40-80 at% Pt. For Pt contents between 32 and 40 at%, discontinuities in the magnetization, magnetostriction, and coercivity versus Pt content were observed; however no discontinuity was observed in the resistivity. The structure of films containing about 25 at% Pt is a mixture of hexagonal and face-centered cubic (FCC) phases. At this composition the magnetostriction is small, but coercivities are large-700 to 2000 Oe-and dependent upon film thickness. The coercivities of these films do not change with heat treatment up to temperatures of 600°C but decrease markedly at 700°C. The properties of equiatomic Co-Pt film s are similar to those of bulk alloys. In particular the large coercivity observed in films after heal treatment at 500° to 700°C is due to the formation of an ordered tetragonal phase within the face-centered cubic matrix. The structure of films of about 75 at% Pt is initially a disordered face-centered cubic phase and with heat treatment beginning at 500°C an ordered face-centered cubic phase forms. The coercivity of these films (∼200 Oe) does not change with annealing at 500°C. It decreases slightly upon further annealing at 600°C to 700°C. Electron microscope observations were used to correlate the magnetic properties with film structure.     

The effect of the Bsof recording head cores on the magnetization of high coercivity media

Two types of recording heads, the cores of which had different values of saturation flux density Bsand almost the same values of effective permeability, were prepared and the recording characteristics with Ni-Co plated discs of varying coercivity Hc(410-900 Oe) were examined. The materials of the head cores were a sputtered alloy (Fe-Si-Al) film (B_{s} = 11 000G) and a single crystalline Mn-Zn ferrite (B_{s} = 3800G). Results showed that the Bsof the head core had to be about five times the Hcof the media to produce the beneficial effects of high Hcon short wavelength recording. From this point of view, the alloy film head has the advantage in high linear density recording because of its large Bs. By using an experimental laminated alloy film head of narrow-track width (60 μm), the core of which had a large effective permeability (such as 115 at 40 MHz), sine-wave signals of short wavelength (smaller than 1.5 μm) and of high frequency (such as 37 MHz) were recorded on a high Hc(900 Oe) plated disc and reproduced with the same head successfully.     

Magnetic properties of Co5Sm-Lodex and Co5Sm-lead composites

Demagnetization curves were recorded for composites of 1) Co5Sm and Lodex, 2) Co5Sm and lead, and 3) two different Co5Sm powders of widely different Hcivalues. "Kinks" observed for the first and third composites but not the second show that the effect results from the difference in Hci. The Co5Sm-Lodex composites produced "kinks" in only the 20-80 wt % Lodex range. Significant improvement of energy product in Lodex composites requires more than 70 wt % of Co5Sm. Better results can be obtained by diluting Co5Sm with lead. For applications operating at high load lines and requiring high inductions, improved properties may be obtained by small additions of Co5Sm to Lodex. Energy product and Hcican be improved for Co5Sm-lead composites by zinc coating the magnetic particles prior to pressing. One sample producedBH_{max}values of 7.5 MGOe and Hciof 13.5 kOe.     

Influence of R1parameter {=Fe2O3/(Y2O3+ Sm2O3+ Lu2O3)} on magnetic bubble properties of (YSmLuCa)3(FeGe)5O12

The influence of R1{=Fe2O3/(Y2O3+Sm2O3+Lu2O3)} in the melt composition on film properties, and growth characteristics, has been investigated for (YSmLuCa)3(FeGe)5O12. The garnet phase is the primary phase when R1is kept between 10 and 60. The temperature coefficient for the bubble collapse filed changes from -0.29 to -0.19 %/°C, and the growth rate with 10°C supercooling changes from 0.60 to 0.15 μm/min, by increasing R1=10 to 60. Distribution coefficients, K^Y, K^Sm, K^Luand K^Geincrease, and K^Feand K^Cadecrease, with increasing R1.     

Magnetic anisotropy of Co-Cr thin films as a function of substrate temperature during deposition

A sequence of Co78Cr22films, 500 nm in thickness, was prepared by deposition on glass in a modified Varian D.C. magnetron S-gun sputtering system. The substrate temperature during deposition, Ts, was fixed at various values with an upper limit of 300°C. Specimens were examined by VSM, TM, FMR and TEM. Msrises significantly with increasing Ts, peaking at 200°C at 370 emu/cm³. The effective volume-averaged anisotropy drops for Ts>110°C from +1.6 KOe to progressively negative values (-4.3 KOe at 300°C). From FMR we find indications of the presence, in addition to the transition and bulk layers, of a highly negative anisotropy constituent (sim-11.5KOe anisotropy field). This resonance appears at Tsvalues of 150°C and above. TEM plane and cross-section views taken on a Ts= 150°C specimen show islands composed of tilted columns within the bulk. For vertical recording, specimens prepared at Tsvalues between 50 and 100°C are recommended. On the other hand, for longitudinal recording applications, films prepared at Tsvalues above 250°C would seem to be appropriate.     

Directional solidification of Co-Cu-R permanent-magnet alloys

Co-Fe-Cu-Ce permanent-magnet alloys have been prepared by directional solidification using a modified Bridgman technique. Samples melted at low superheat temperatures (DeltaT sim 20degC above the melting point of about 1100°C) and solidified at moderate rates (∼2.3 cm/h) resulted in a reasonably homogeneous columnar grain structure with a preferred crystallographic orientation. Thecaxis is generally aligned within 15° of the growth axis. Increasing the speed of solidification led to a fine-grained structure with no texture, while decreasing the speed led to coarse columnar grains with erratic orientation. A large superheat temperature (DeltaT sim 300-400degC resulted in a reaction of the liquid with the alumina crucible wall and led to the formation of face-centered cubic Co-rich dendrites. With the modified Bridgman technique, oriented samples 8 cm long and 2.54 cm in diameter have been prepared with good magnetic properties. After annealing at 1000°C followed by aging at 400°C, a Co3.5Fe0.5CuCe alloy exhibited values ofiHc= 7000 Oe, Br= 6100 G, and(BH)_{max} = 9.2MG.Oe. A Co3.6Fe0.5Cu0.9Ce alloy exhibited values ofiHc= 6000 Oe,B_{r} = 6250G, aud(BH)_{max} = 9.5MG.Oe after similar treatment.     

The influence of applied tensile stress on power loss in Co-rich amorphous Co-Fe-Si-B ribbons with induced magnetic anisotropy

The influence on power loss PTof applied tensile stress σ in amorphous (Co0.89Fe0.11)72Mo3Si15B10(lambda_{s} > 0) and Co73Mo2Si15B10(lambda_{s} < 0) ribbons with different induced magnetic anisotropy Kuis reported. The losses are measured under sinusoidal flux conditions atf = 50Hz,J_{max} = 0.57T and atf = 400Hz,J_{max} = 0.10T. Measurements are carried out on samples in a stress-relieved state and with magnetic anisotropies induced by stress or field annealing. Atf = 50Hz, a minimum m Ptversus σ is observed. The σ-value (sigma_{min}) corresponding to the minimum PTincreases with increasing |Ku|. Atf = 400Hz, a minimum in PTversus σ is observed in the samples with induced magnetic anisotropy, whereassigma_{min} = 0in the stress-relieved samiales. However, no correlation between andsigma_{min}and Kuis possible from the present data.     

Submicron bubble garnets and their characterizations

New Submicron (0.5-1.0 mum diam) bubble garnets have been developed. In order to reduce saturation induction4piMsas low as possible, suitable choice of amounts of nonmagnetic ions substituting for ferric ions in both tetrahedral and octahedral sites were studied in (YSm)3(FeAl)5O12, (YSmLu)3- (FeGaSc)5O12, (YSmLu)3(FeAlSc)5O12and (LaLuSm)3- (FeGa)5O12garnet systems. For example, in (YSmLu)3- (FeAlSc)5O12a film with the following properties was grown; strip widthw = 0.7mum, film thicknessh= 0.7mum, quality factorq=2.8, Curie temperatureTc= 140degC and4piMs=770G. The temperature properties of those films could be improved drastically by doping with a small amount of Gd ion. Wall mobilities μw of those films are in the region from 200 to 500cm/s/Oe. Preceding these material studies, several film characterization methods have been investigated. Film thickness was measured by Fluorescent X-ray method, strip width by using a highly sensitivity TV camera, and bubble collapse field by FMR resonance technique respectively.     

Contiguous-disk bubble domain devices

Contiguous-disk bubble devices are an approach to higher bit density through the use of coarse overlay patterns in manipulating small bubbles to relax device lithography requirements. As a first step towards such an objective, a fully processed chip using ion-implanted devices has been tested, showing the feasibility of all required memory functions with 5-μm bubbles and 25-μm period overlay patterns. A critique of permalloy versus implanted contiguous-disk devices is made, pointing out their basic difference in magnetization reversal processes and explaining the superiority of the latter over the former in achieving a good edge affinity of bubbles. The requirements for a good implanted device are reviewed, including the selection of garnet material parameters (K1, λ111), of implantation parameters (ion energy and dosage) and of device pattern geometry (thickness and shape of implanted layer). An understanding of these requirements has made it possible to demonstrate 1-μm bubble propagation in several contiguous-disk type circuits with 4.5-μm periods, yielding an areal density of over 3 × 10⁷bit/in²made by conventional photolithography.     

Difference between temperature dependences of both initial permeability and maximum permeability of sendust alloys

The temperature dependences (-10-50°) of the initial permeability (μ5), the maximum permeability (μmax), and the coercive force(Hc) of Sendust alloys (Fe-9 to 10 wt% Si-5 to 7 wt% Al) continuously cooled to room temperature, were investigated. Most of the studied alloys gave at least one peak value for both μ5and μmax, in the studied temperature range. The temperature giving the peak μ5agreed well with that of μmax(an effective permeability at an alternating field): the peak temperature of μeffseems to correspond to the temperature giving a zero magnetocrystalline anisotropy constant (K1= 0). The relationship between temperature and μ5was not always the same as that between temperature and μmax. From the compositional dependence of μmaxat various temperatures (10-30°C), the zero polycrystalline magnetostriction constant (λs = 0) line of the ternary Sendust alloys at each temperature could be evaluated. It is clarified that μ5of the alloys with K1< 0 is determined by both K1and λs, whereas μmaxis primarily determined by λs. When K1changes with temperature from a negative to a positive value, both μ5and μmaxof the alloys markedly decrease, independently of λs.     

Demagnetization-free longitudinal recording on flexible thin film metal media

The variation of demagnetization effects with media parameters for longitudinal contact recording has been investigated. Co-Re thin film metal media were sputtered onto flexible polyimide substrates. It was found that when the film thickness δ and demagnetizaton parameterB_{r}delta/H_{c}were less than 2 μ inch and 15 μinch, respectively, demagnetization-free longitudinal recording was obtained up to the recording density of 75 KFRPI at the head-to-medium spacing of 3 μ inch. As a result, recording densities of D50over 50 KFRPI were achieved with a 20 μinch gap head. For thicker films with larger demagnetization parameters, i.e.,delta geq 4 muinch andB_{r}delta/H_{c} geq 40 muinch, the longitudinal recording process approached the demagnetization limit. The results show that (with existing head field gradients) improvement in linear density of thin metal media can be obtained by an approximate factor of two before the demagnetization limit is reached.     

Uniaxial and cubic anisotropy constants in ion-implanted Sm,Tm,Ga:YIG bubble thin films

The effects of ion implantation into (SmTmY)3(GaFe)5O12garnet thin films have been studied by ferromagnetic resonance. He+ ions were used for implantation with doses ranging from 3 to 4 × 10¹⁵He+/ cm²and implantation energy ranging from 150 to 175 Kev. The uniaxial and cubic anisotropy constants have been studied as a function of temperature from 0°C to 100°C for both as-grown and ion-implanted films. The implantation has effectively changed an easy-axis anisotropy to that of an easy plane in the implanted layers of the films. A cubic anisotropy constant K1with values varying from 4 × 10³to 6 × 10³erg/cm³at room temperature has been observed in these films. The results also indicated that to the first order, the implanted region in the film was essentially magnetically uncoupled from the bulk of the film.     

Magnetic properties of amorphous (fe, ni)80B20, (fe, ni)80B19si1, and (fe, ni)80P14B6alloys

Magnetic measurements were performed on amorphous (Fe, Ni)80B20, (Fe, Ni)80B19Si1, and (Fe, Ni)80P14B6alloy ribbons to yield the values of the magnetic moment per transition metal atom at 0 K and the Curie temperature. A close fit to the moment data, obtained by allowing not only the moments on Ni and Fe atoms to vary with Fe concentrationx, as revealed by neutron diffraction in crystalline alloys, but also the number of electrons per atom npand nbthat P and B atoms, respectively, donate to the transition metaldbands as described by the relationsn_{p} = 1.74 + 0.75 (1 - x)andn_{b} = 0.58 + 1.20 (1 - x), suggests a moment of 0 andsim0.13 mu_{B}per Ni atom in amorphous Ni80P14B6and Ni80B20alloys, respectively. The functional dependence of the Curie temperature onx, when followed closely for low Fe concentrations, gives the critical concentration xcabove which ferromagnetism appears in amorphous FexNi80-xB20and FexNi80-xP14B6alloy series asx_{c} cong 5and 8 at % Fe, respectively. The results of a theory based on coherent-potential approximation have been fitted to the measured values of Curie temperature in order to arrive at the Fe concentration dependence of the exchange interaction (JNiNi) between Ni-Ni pairs. The physical significance of the variation of JNiNiwithxobtained thereby has been discussed.     

Magnetic interactions in pseudobinary rare earth-3d intermetallics

Magnetic measurements on pseudobinary intermetallic compounds of the series R(MnxFe1-x)2(R = Y, Gd, Er) R6(MnxFe1-x)23(R = Y, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm) R2(FexCo1-x)17(R = Y, Gd, Dy) R2(FexNi1-x)17(R = Y, Gd) are reported. Magnetization and susceptibility measurements have been performed at temperatures from 4 K to 1500 K. The magnetic interactions between Mn and Fe are discussed in terms of a localized-moment model. In the case of the R2(FexM1-x)17(M = Co, Ni) compounds, a band model seems to be more appropriate. Mössbauer Fe⁵⁷spectra obtained on the R2(Fe,Co)17series can be explained by a superposition of four different six-line patterns corresponding to the four crystallographically nonequivalent 3d sublattices.     

Spectrum and lineshape of bubble-lattice resonance

Spectral analysis of photometrically detected bubble-lattice oscillations reveal resonance frequencies of 45 and 66 MHz in a 6.2μm film of (Gd,Y)3(Fe,Ga)5O12. Similar results are obtained for stripe lattices. Existing theory explains the dependence of the lower-frequency resonance on bias field and lattice parameter. To explain the higher resonance, a theory of flexural wall vibration for plane walls associates the resonances with wave functions having zero and two nodal lines lying parallel to the film, respectively. We conclude that the amplitude of the main mode is greater at the surfaces than within the interior of the film. Characteristic fold-over and clipping of resonance line shapes are noted and discussed.     

Magneto-optic insulators utilizing the optical activity of Co++(Td)

Large magneto-optic effects are associated with the crystal field transitions of Co++(Td) in a variety of spinel oxides. In the oxides, the F and P crystal field bands peak at about 1.5 and 0.6 μm, respectively. Many iron-containing quaternary compounds (CoTxFe2-xO4) have transition temperatures above ambient. Here, T is a trivalent metal ion such as Cr³⁺or Rh³⁺. Room-temperature magneto-optic measurements on a number of these compounds indicate peak Faraday effects in the range of 0.5 × 10⁵to 1.0 × 10⁵(deg/cm) at about 0.6 μm. The Curie temperature may be adjusted by the compositional parameter x and normal remanence of the surface Kerr effects are observed. The latter properties are potentially useful for optical memory devices. These materials are considered for isolation and modulation devices in the 5.0 to 12.0 μm wavelength range.