Write clock synchronization appartus for magnetic recording disk drives with patterned media

Abstract

A write clock generator for use in writing data to a rotating patterned magnetic media disk is disclosed. The generator includes a magnetic read head for generating a succession of servo signals representative of succession of servo magnetization patterns detected from a corresponding succession of arcuate sectors along a circular data track on the disk. A preamble processor generates a corresponding succession of sector pair signals representative of the lengths of adjacent sectors along the data track on a rolling pair-wise basis. A next sector length predictor processor determines for a succession of pairs of sectors, a length ratio of the lengths of the sectors in the respective pairs of sectors. A clock generator generates a periodic clock for each sector of the succession of sectors, wherein the clock rate associated with a current sector has an associated phase deviation relative to a clock rate associated with a previous sector, which is proportional to the length ratio for the current sector and the previous sector.