Recording medium having high melting point recording layer, information recording method thereof, and information reproducing apparatus and method therefor

Abstract

A simple-structured recording medium without a mask layer and information recording and reproducing methods, which resolve thermal stability related problems arising during reproduction, the recording medium including a high melting point recording layer between first and second dielectric layers. The method of recording information on the recording medium involves irradiating a laser beam onto the recording medium to induce reaction and diffusion in the high melting point recording layer and the first and second dielectric layers. The method of reproducing information recorded on such a super-resolution near-field recording medium by the above method involves generating plasmon using crystalline particles of the high melting point recording layer and the first and second dielectric layers as a scatter source to reproduce information regardless of a diffraction limit of a laser used.