Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.v.

Hgst Netherlands, B.v.

Western Digital Technologies, Inc.

International Business Machines Corporation

Yoshihiro Ikeda

Kentaro Takano

Hoa Van Do

Mary Frances Minardi

Qing Dai

Gunn Choe

Kai Tang

Xiaoping Bian

Byron Hassberg Lengsfield, Iii

Min Xiao

Bernd Heinz

David Thomas Margulies

Natacha Frederique Supper

Qi-Fan Xiao

Hong Deng

Jack Jyh-Kau Chang

Chu S Tran

Yoshiaki Sonobe

Masayoshi Shimizu

Neil Smith

Matthew Joseph Carey

Dieter Klaus Weller

Ernesto Esteban Marinero

Bruce David Terris

Eric Edward Fullerton

Kiwamu Tanahashi

Manfred Ernst Schabes

Mohammad Taghi Mirzamaani

James Terrence Olson

Qing Zhu

Andreas Klaus Berger

Petrus Antonius VanDerHeijden

Jinliu Wang

Sylvia Helena Florez

Andreas K Berger

Various apparatuses, systems, methods, and media are disclosed to provide a magnetic recording medium that capping layer doped with an effective amount of metal to control grain-to-grain exchange coupling in a capping layer. A magnetic recording medium includes a substrate, a magnetic recording layer (MRL) on the substrate, and a capping layer on the MRL. The capping layer include Co and is doped with a metal (e.g., Ru or Ta) in a range from 1 atomic percent to 5 atomic percent, inclusive.

Magnetic recording media with metal-doped capping layer

A magnetic recording medium is provided that includes a recording layer structure including a first magnetic recording layer, a second magnetic recording layer, a third magnetic recording layer, a fourth magnetic recording layer, and a plurality of nonmagnetic exchange coupling layers. The first magnetic recording layer is closest to a substrate and the fourth magnetic recording layer is farthest from the substrate. An amount of Co in the first magnetic recording layer is greater than or equal to the amount of Co in the second magnetic recording layer, the third magnetic recording layer, and the fourth magnetic recording layer.

Magnetic recording medium with multiple exchange coupling layers and small grain magnetic layers

According to one embodiment, a magnetic recording medium includes: a substrate; and a magnetic recording layer structure formed above the substrate. The magnetic recording layer structure includes five or more magnetic recording layers and four or more nonmagnetic exchange coupling layers, where the magnetic recording layers and the nonmagnetic exchange coupling layers are arranged in an alternating pattern, and where the magnetic recording layers are separated from each other by least one of the nonmagnetic exchange coupling layers. The magnetic recording layer positioned closest to the substrate has each of the following: an average magnetic grain pitch of about 8.3 nm or less, a magnetic anisotropy field (H) value of greater than or equal to about 20 kOe, and a thickness that is about 40% of a total thickness of the magnetic recording layer structure.

In one general embodiment, a magnetic medium includes a recording layer having at least three exchange control layers each having a magnetic moment less than 100 emu/cc, and four magnetic layers separated from one another by the exchange control layers. An uppermost of the magnetic layers is doped with oxygen. In another general embodiment, a magnetic medium includes a recording layer having at least three exchange control layers and four magnetic layers separated from one another by the exchange control layers. An uppermost of the magnetic layers has an oxygen content of greater than 0.5 vol %. An average pitch of magnetic grains in a lowermost of the magnetic layers is 9 nm or less. A lowermost of the magnetic layers has an oxide content of at least 20 vol %.

Vertically and horizontally weakly coupled perpendicular small grain media

A magnetic media having a novel cap layer that allows the cap layer having improved exchange coupling and reduced thickness. The cap layer is doped with a non-reactive element such as Ar, Kr, Xe, Ne or He preferably Ar. This doping reduces increases exchange coupling and reduces the dead layer, allowing the cap layer to be made thinner for reduced magnetic spacing and improved data recording performance.

Exchange enhanced cap manufactured with argon and oxygen implantation

Methods of fabricating perpendicular magnetic recording media are disclosed. The multilayer structures of the perpendicular magnetic recording media are fabricated by varying the sputtering conditions (i.e., pressure, sputtering gas, etc) in a single sputtering module so that multiple sputtering modules are not needed to form the multilayer structures. These fabrication methods allow sputtering tools with a limited number of chambers, which were designed for the manufacture of longitudinal media, to be used to efficiently produce perpendicular media architectures which heretofore required a large number of sputtering modules. It is further shown that media structures involving a geometric weak-link architecture are suited for these fabrication techniques.

Generation of multilayer structures in a single sputtering module of a multi-station magnetic recording media fabrication tool

A perpendicular magnetic recording media comprises a substrate, a first magnetic oxide layer, a first exchange control layer, a second magnetic oxide layer, a second exchange control layer, and a magnetic cap layer positioned above the substrate, in this order. The first magnetic oxide layer may have an anisotropy energy (Ku) between 6&#xd7;10and 8&#xd7;10erg/cm, and a magnetization (Ms) between 600 and 800 emu/cm. The second magnetic oxide layer may have a Ku between 5&#xd7;10and 8&#xd7;10erg/cm, and an Ms between 550 and 750 emu/cm. The first exchange control layer may have an Ms between 0 and 100 emu/cm. The second exchange control layer may have an Ms between 0 and 40 emu/cm.

High performance perpendicular magnetic granular media consisting of multiple exchange control layers

A method according to one embodiment includes forming a high Ku first oxide magnetic layer above a substrate by sputtering; forming a low Ku second oxide magnetic layer above the first oxide magnetic layer by sputtering; forming an exchange coupling layer of CoCrPt-oxide above the second oxide magnetic layer; and forming a magnetic cap layer above the exchange coupling layer. Additional systems and methods are also presented.

Perpendicular magnetic recording media with oxide-containing exchange coupling layer

Soft magnetic film fabricated with preferred uniaxial anisotropy for perpendicular recording. One type of cathode design has a field direction that is parallel to the direction of the Hex of the second SUL with a magnetically-pinned first SUL. In addition, SUL structures having low AP exchange energy also are disclosed. The SUL structure combines the cathode field direction of the SULwith the pinned SUL. The SULis magnetically pinned to the pinning layer and the pinning direction is parallel to the direction of the cathode field applied during deposition of the SUL. High Hc ferro-magnetic materials may be deposited onto a heated substrate that is magnetized along the radial direction by the cathode field. The pinning field may be higher than the cathode field, indicating that the cathode field during deposition of the SULcannot disturb the magnetic state of the SULpinned to pinning layer.

Methods and apparatus to fabricate soft magnetic film with preferred uniaxial anisotropy for perpendicular recording

A method is described for improving recording performance of a perpendicular media. The method includes controlling the anisotropy levels in different sublayers of the magnetic recording layers of the perpendicular media. Further, the different sublayers thicknesses can be altered to match the media to a particular head.

Magnetic recording capping layer with multiple layers for controlling anisotropy for perpendicular recording media

A magnetic storage medium according to one embodiment includes a substrate; a first oxide magnetic layer formed above the substrate; a second oxide magnetic layer formed above the first oxide magnetic layer; an exchange coupling layer formed above the second oxide magnetic layer, the exchange coupling layer comprising an oxide; and a magnetic cap layer formed above the exchange coupling layer. A method according to one embodiment includes forming a high Ku first oxide magnetic layer above a substrate by sputtering; forming a low Ku second oxide magnetic layer above the first oxide magnetic layer by sputtering; forming an exchange coupling layer of CoCrPt-oxide above the second oxide magnetic layer; and forming a magnetic cap layer above the exchange coupling layer. Additional systems and methods are also presented.

A perpendicular recording magnetic media with a partially-oxidized cap layer combines a second oxide layer with a first cap layer to form the singular, partially-oxidized cap. The oxidized portion and the non-oxidized portion of the partially-oxidized layer are sputtered from a same target and have a same composition of metallic elements. The Ms of the oxidized portion is about twice as high as the non-oxidized portion. The oxidized portion has a thickness in the range of about 5 to 25 angstroms. The layer composition may comprise CoPtCrBTa, with a Cr at % of about 18-24%, Pt at about 13-20%, B at about 4-10%, and Ta at about 0-2%.

Partially-oxidized cap layer for hard disk drive magnetic media

The invention uses an adhesion layer of an amorphous alloy of aluminum. A first aluminum titanium embodiment of the amorphous adhesion layer preferably contains approximately equal amounts of aluminum and titanium (+/&#x2212;5 at. %). A second embodiment of the amorphous adhesion layer preferably contains approximately equal amounts of aluminum and titanium (+/&#x2212;5 at. %) and up to 10 at. % Zr with 5 at. % Zr being preferred. A third embodiment is aluminum tantalum preferably including from 15 to 25 at. % tantalum with 20 at. % being preferred. The most preferred compositions are AlTi, AlTiZror AlTa. The adhesion layer is deposited onto the substrate. The substrate can be glass or a metal such as NiP-plated AlMg. The preferred embodiment of media according to the invention is for perpendicular recording and includes a magnetically soft underlayer deposited above the adhesion layer.

Adhesion layer for thin film magnetic recording medium

An improved structure for the construction of perpendicular recording media is disclosed. The structure includes a perpendicular recording layer with at least two oxide sublayers or a lower sublayer of a non-oxide. One structure includes an upper sublayer comprised of a Silicon-oxide, while a lower sublayer is comprised of a Tantalum-oxide. The structures provide for increased coercivity and corrosion resistance.

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Yoshihiro Ikeda