Recording on perpendicular anisotropy media with ring heads

This paper reports experimental studies directed at the application of ring head structures to a perpendicular recording system. The media tested were sputter deposited films of CoCrTa alloys. Ferrite heads were studied, but the thin film head was chosen for evaluating roll-off, overwrite, and superposition. The data presented in the paper demonstrates the potential of high density recording with a single layer medium with perpendicular magnetic anistropy and a thin film head separated by 0.20 micrometers.     

Processing of signals from media with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

The readback signals from a ring (Karlqvist) head and recording medium with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy are analyzed using signal processing criteria. The self-consistent model developed by Beardsley and Potter is used to study the feasibility of detecting transitions at high densities. Simulated readback signals are discussed in terms of time and frequency domain characteristics. A simplified linear system model is proposed which includes the effects of media orientation. Filtering and detection methods for the "vertical" channel are discussed.     

Wear resistance, mechanical strength and microstructure on sputtered CoCr perpendicular media

Wear resistance for sputtered CoCr perpendicular recording media has been investigated. Wear resistance and mechanical strength (tensile strength and Young's modulus) have been measured for CoCr (0-33 at% Cr) films deposited under various sputtering conditions. Furthermore, their correlations to CoCr film microstructures have been studied. The wear resistance on the CoCr films strongly depends upon the mechanical strength, and their relationship can be explained in terms of Archard's adhesive wear theory. Wear resistance and mechanical strength for CoCr (5-33 at% Cr) films decrease steeply at high sputtering Ar pressure. However, those for pure Co films are independent from sputtering pressure. Microstructure analyses for CoCr and pure Co films indicate that a main factor reducing the wear resistance and the mechanical strength is Cr segregation in the CoCr films.     

Enhanced perpendicular coercive force of CoCr film formed on a verythin initial sublayer

Perpendicular coercivity of CoCr sputtered films on Ti adhesive layers decreases drastically as RF sputtering power increases. A very thin CoCr sublayer deposited at low power enhances the coercivity of the succeeding CoCr layer. Magnetic properties and segregated microstructures show that the initial segregated microstructure is inherited by the main CoCr layer even though the RF sputtering power changes during the sputtering process. Its segregated microstructure is enhanced by the initial 100-Å segregated structure     

Magnetic anisotropy of perpendicular media on grooved structuresubstrate

Magnetic anisotropies were investigated for CoCr perpendicular magnetic films on grooved structure substrates (pitch length 2.1 μm) prepared by CF₄-reactive-ion etching. Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy decreases in the region where groove depth GD >650 A. The reduction is due to the inclination of the crystal growth axis on the groove surface. In-plane magnetic anisotropy, K_u∥, strongly depends on GD and saturation magnetization M_s. In a region of large GD and large M_s, Ku_∥ is mainly due to shape anisotropy. In a region of small GD and small M_s , K_u∥ is caused by perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, in addition to shape and magnetorestrictive anisotropy     

Domain splitting in thin films with in-plane anisotropy

Splitting of magnetic ripple into domains due to an external magnetic field was observed using the defocused electron microscopy method. The tested film was magnetized perpendicularly or parallel to the easy axis of the uniaxial anisotropy, and both the magnetic field direction and the anisotropy axis lay in the film plane. Splitting of the ripple into 1 μm domains was mainly reversible until the value of ripple amplitude reached 0.5 rad. Movements of the Néel walls and Néel-Bloch-Néel transformation of the domain walls were the main irreversible phenomena which led to hysteresis. Domain splitting of the ripple is properly described only by a Riedel model which includes the interactions between cores and tails of the periodically arranged Néel walls.     

Control of magnetic domains in Co/Pd multilayered nanowires with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

Magnetic domain wall (DW) motion induced by spin transfer torque in magnetic nanowires is of emerging technological interest for its possible applications in spintronic memory or logic devices. Co/Pd multilayered magnetic nanowires with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy were fabricated on the surfaces of Si wafers by ion-beam sputtering. The nanowires had different sized widths and pinning sites formed by an anodic oxidation method via scanning probe microscopy (SPM) with an MFM tip. The magnetic domain structure was changed by an anodic oxidation method. To discover the current-induced DW motion in the Co/Pd nanowires, we employed micromagnetic modeling based on the Landau-Lifschitz-Gilbert (LLG) equation. The split DW motions and configurations due to the edge effects of pinning site and nanowire appeared.     

Fabrication and characterization of thin films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for high-density magnetic recording

Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) was first observed in thin films of cobalt-chromium alloys in 1974, and perpendicular magnetic recording was proposed in 1977. After less than ten years, a new technology for high-density magnetic recording is firmly established. This breakthrough of the science and technology of magnetic recording has been made possible mainly through the ingenuity and concerted efforts of researchers. The preparation, characterization, and application of the Co-Cr films featuring PMA have been extensively studied. This paper reviews the large number of reports on PMA films with emphasis on three areas: 1. processing of PMA films; 2. correlation of magnetic properties and microstructures of PMA films; and 3. state-of-art techniques for fabricating PMA films.Nomenclature PMA Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy - PMR Perpendicular magnetic recording - B Magnetic induction - H Magnetic field - H _c Coercivity - H _c, Perpendicular coercivity - H _d Demagnetizing field - H _k Anisotropy field - H Perpendicular anisotropy constant - M _r Remanent magnetization - M_s Saturation magnetization - P _Ar Argon pressure - T _s Substrate temperature - V _b Substrate bias voltage - Incidence angle - ₅₀ Half-width dispersion angle in the rocking curve - _c Curie temperature - ₀ Internal stress     

Ion-implantation studies on perpendicular media

Magnetic and structural properties of ion implanted perpendicular recording media have been investigated. Effects of 12C+ ion implantation with the doses of 2 x 10(11), 10(13), 10(14) and 10(16) ions/cm2 in the magnetic recording layer of conventional granular and continuous perpendicular media are reported in this paper. Implantation with the highest fluence of 10(16) ions/cm2 resulted in change of the magnetization reversal mechanism, thereby reducing coercivity. In continuous media the implanted ions cause increase in pinning defects, leading to an increase in coercivity. In contrast, high dose was found to cause similar change in the crystallographic properties of both the granular and continuous media.     

A large-area mesoporous array of magnetic nanostructure with perpendicular anisotropy integrated on Si wafers

Large-area, over several square centimeters, mesoporous array of magnetic nanostructure with perpendicular anisotropy is prepared by depositing Co/Pt multilayers (MLs) on a mesopore array of anodized alumina (AAO) fabricated on Si wafers. The MLs are mainly deposited on the top of AAO walls and perimeters of the pores; very small amounts of magnetic material reach the bottom due to the high aspect ratio of AAO. Consequently, ordered pores are present in the magnetic MLs. The mean pore diameter of the fabricated mesoporous array is 8.83?nm with a standard deviation of 3.16?nm and density of about 2.1 × 10(11)?cm(-2). The Co/Pt MLs deposited on AAO and Si both exhibit strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, but the perpendicular coercivity (H(c)) increases by 15 times on AAO compared to that on Si. On the other hand, the magnetic cluster size decreases from 1000?nm (on Si) to 100?nm due to the presence of high-density pores. The dramatic increase in H(c) and the decrease in magnetic cluster size suggest that the pores behave as effective pinning sites. The magnetization-switching characteristics of the fabricated porous structure are different from those of the continuous films or Stoner-Wohlfarth-type (S-W) particles. One of the potential applications of this mesoporous structure may be in the field of high-density magnetic data storage.     

Fabrication and characterization of thin films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for high-density magnetic recording

Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) was first observed in thin films of cobalt-chromium alloys in 1974, and perpendicular magnetic recording was proposed in 1977. After less than ten years, a new technology for high-density magnetic recording is firmly established. This breakthrough of the science and technology of magnetic recording has been made possible mainly through the ingenuity and concerted efforts of Iwasaki and other researchers. The preparation, characterization, and application of the Co-Cr films featuring PMA have been extensively studied. This paper reviews the large number of reports on PMA films with emphasis in three areas: (1) processing of PMA films; (2) correlation of magnetic properties and microstructures of PMA films; and (3) state-of-the-art techniques for fabricating PMA films.Nomenclature PMA Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy - PMR Perpendicular magnetic recording - B Magnetic induction - H Magnetic field - H _c Coercivity - H _c, Perpendicular coercivity - H _d Demagnetizing field - H _K Anisotropy field - H Perpendicular anisotropy constant - M _r Remanent magnetization - M _s Saturation magnetization - P _Ar Argon pressure - T _s Substrate temperature - V _b Substrate bias voltage - Incidence angle - ₅₀ Half-width dispersion angle in the rocking curve - _c Curie temperature - _o Internal stress     

Magnetization reversal of antiferromagnetically coupled perpendicular anisotropy films driven by current

By inserting an ultrathin Pt layer at Co/Ru interface,we established antiferromagnetic coupling with outof-plane magnetization in Co/Ru/Co film stacks fabricated by sputtering.To achieve configuration suitable for free layer,the magnetic properties of the stacks have been investigated by changing the thickness of Co,Ru and Pt layers using an orthogonal wedges technique.It is found that magnetic properties for upper Co layer thinner than 0.5 nm are sensitive to little change in Ru thickness.Improving continuity of upper Co layer by slightly increasing the thickness can effectively increase the squareness of minor loop.The switching magnetization of synthetic antiferromagnetic(SAF) structure is achieved by DC current under an in-plane static magnetic field of ± 500 Oe.This structure is very promising for free layer in spintronic application.     

NiCo films with perpendicular magnetization anisotropy deposited on dielectric substrate by using polyol process

In this paper, the polyol process, a catalyst free, non-aqueous, and electroless process, is developed to deposit the nanostructured Ni_xCo_100 ? x magnetic films on aluminum nitride (AlN) substrate. Nickel (II) acetate tetrahydrate and cobalt (II) acetate tetrahydrate were reduced by ethylene glycol (EG) at 180 °C, and the reduced Ni and Co nanostructures were deposited on the AlN substrate merged in boiling EG for 60 min. The elongated nanostructures in the films are detected through the scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Interestingly, some of the elongated nanostructures are pointing out of the substrate. It indicates that the component ratio of Ni and Co in the films is different with the starting precursor molar ratio. The film thickness increases from 1 to 1.8 μm when the atomic ratio of Co (at.%) in the film increased from 44.6% to 70.8%. Furthermore, it is found that the crystallite size decreases from 44 to 25 nm with increasing Ni (at.%). In addition, the magnetic properties have been analyzed through vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) at room temperature. The results show that the films have the perpendicular preferred anisotropy. The anisotropy field (H_K) for the Ni₅₀Co₅₀ is about 4.75 kOe, which is possibly caused by the assembled direction of the elongated nanostructures.     

Tuning the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy of co-based layers in multilayered systems

The combination of Pt with Co either in alloy or in multilayer form is widely studied among the potential magnetic media for ultrahigh density magnetic recording. On the other hand the combination of Co with Cr in alloy form is currently providing commercial magnetic media. In an effort to further exploit and benefit from both systems, we fabricated Co(1-x)Cr(x)/Pt multilayers with two adjustable parameters. The first one is the Cr concentration on CoCr layer (x = 0, 5, 30), which modulates segregation effects on Co grains, thus tunes macroscopic magnetic features such as saturation magnetization and coercive field. The second one is the small layer thickness (< or = 0.6 nm) that affects interlayer coupling, perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and magnetization enhancement through spin polarization of Pt atoms in a ferromagnetic environment. The X-ray diffraction patterns verified the existence of multilayered structures following a preferable face-centered-cubic stacking. The Pt thickness and Cr concentration are found to significantly affect the macroscopic magnetic behavior. It is remarkable the fact that, samples present perpendicular anisotropy that scales with Pt thickness and temperature, even in the case of significant Cr concentration (30% in the alloy) when ferromagnetic behavior is expected to diminish according to relevant studies in alloys and in bulk films. Such an effect may be attributed to spin-polarization of Pt interlayers and was evidenced by X-ray magnetic circular dichroism. The spin-polarization of Pt is also the drive for the strong magneto-optic enhancement in the ultra-violet region between 4.5 and 5 eV shown by magnetooptic Kerr spectroscopy.     

High-potential magnetic anisotropy of CoPtCr-SiO/sub 2/ perpendicular recording media

The magnetic anisotropy of CoPtCr-SiO/sub 2/ perpendicular recording media, including higher energy terms, was studied as a function of film composition and seed layer materials. All series of CoPtCr films with various Cr content, deposited on Ru seed layers, show maximum values of total anisotropy K/sub u/ at 25-30 at%Pt. The maximum value for CoPt(Cr=0) films reaches /spl sim/15/spl times/10/sup 6/ erg/cm/sup 3/. The addition of SiO/sub 2/ to the CoPtCr films reduces the grain K/sub u/, however the grain K/sub u/ maintains a large value of 8/spl times/10/sup 6/ erg/cm/sup 3/ even when 10at%SiO/sub 2/ is added to (Co/sub 90/Cr/sub 10/)/sub 80/Pt/sub 20/, for instance, which indicates the high-potential thermal stability. Theoretical calculations for media designs of 400 Gbits/in/sup 2/ revealed that the ratio of the high-energy anisotropy term K/sub u2/ to K/sub u1/(K/sub u/=K/sub u1/+K/sub u2/) is required to be 0.2-0.35 to enhance the energy barrier for the remanent state, without a notable change in switching field. The films deposited on Ru seed layers were found to show negligibly small K/sub u2/ values, however, the values of K/sub u1/ and K/sub u2/ vary significantly with the seed layer material used. K/sub u1/ decreases almost linearly as the K/sub u2/ value increases. It is concluded that CoPtCr films have a sufficient potential in the values of K/sub u1/ and K/sub u2/ for high-density perpendicular media.     

Nanostructured SmCo5 thin films with perpendicular anisotropy formed in a wide range of Sm-Co compositions

In this work, we prepared SmCo5 thin films with (0001) texture exhibiting perpendicular anisotropy in a wide range of Sm(x)Co(100-x) compositions (x = 13.2 approximately 37.0) on Cu/Ta underlayers. At a composition of Sm16.7Co83.3 (SmCo5), the SmCo5 film exhibits a maximum perpendicular coercivity of 18.2 kOe, which is attributed to a good crystallinity and an excellent (000l) texture. The SmCo5 (000l) peaks are shifted to smaller angles compared to the standard powder sample which indicates the formation of a SmCoCu alloy through Cu diffusion. The EDX result for this sample gives a composition of SmCo3Cu2.1 which confirms Cu diffusion into the SmCo5 layer. TEM image shows that SmCo5 film is well crystallized with a grain size of 50 nm.     

Investigations on the interlayer coupling in Co/Pt multilayers with perpendicular anisotropy via the extraordinary Hall effect

The interlayer coupling in Co/Pt multilayers has been investigated via the measurements of extraordinary Hall effect. In the conventional [Co/Pt]_n multilayer, the coercivity H_C has been observed to increase exponentially for n < 6 and almost linearly for n > 6 with the decrease of temperature. Surprisingly, H_C for n = 1 shows the fastest increase at low temperatures, and becomes the largest one at T < 40 K. As a function of the repetition number n, the almost temperature-independent oscillation of H_C has been observed, being indicative of the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida type ferromagnetic interlayer coupling in the [Co/Pt]_n multilayer. However, the antiferromagnetic interlayer coupling can be realized via the spin-valve configuration of the Co/Pt multilayer. In the Co/Pt/[Co/Pt]_n multilayer, the antiferromagnetic-to-ferromagnetic transition of the interlayer coupling has been observed at low temperatures. These observed phenomena are strongly related to the temperature-dependent polarization in the Co/Pt multilayers.     

Experimental studies of longitudinal and perpendicular high density recording

Single layer and double layer Co-Cr disks of various coercivities were sputter-deposited on rigid substrates and magnetic parameters measured. Record and playback properties were studied using both ferrite and thin film heads under identical system environments. A well optimized Ni-Co plated longitudinal disk was used as a benchmark throughout this investigation for direct comparison. With the objective of using "off the shelf" ring heads to bring up the perpendicular recording technology on rigid substrates, it was found that the performance of both our preliminary single and double layer Co-Cr perpendicular disks were at least as good as the well optimized longitudinal disk. The double layer disks have an added advantage of lower write current. Signal processing via Hilbert transform using both rectangular and Hamming windows was also studied and applied to the output waveforms.     

Domain modifications due to compression perpendicular to the rolling direction of coated HI-B sheets

Domain modifications due to compressive stress applied perpendicular to the rolling direction (RD) of coated HI-B sheets are discussed. Both single and stacked sheets were investigated. Compressive stress normal to the sheet surface, as well as compressive stress within the sheet plane, was found to cause refinement of the main domain structure. The degree of refinement increased considerably with increasing initial domain width in the unstressed demagnetized sample. The major refinement occurred for applied pressures up to about 1.5 MPa and 3 MPa in the stacked and unstacked case, respectively. The practical importance of these effects is discussed. Possibilities of using them in a beneficial way by increasing the tension in the core bandages are considered.