RIA: New high moment soft magnetic multilayers & their applications in sub-half micron track width magnetic recording

9409805 WANG磁盘驱动器是占主导地位的计算机大容量存储设备。为了满足图像处理、大规模并行计算和多媒体的存储需求，磁盘驱动器的面记录密度需要从目前的200兆比特/英寸2提高到超过10千兆比特/英寸2，增加了大约两个数量级。为了实现这一目标，设计和制造高磁矩、亚微米磁道宽度的关键技术要求磁写入头在高矫顽力磁盘上记录尺寸约为0.1um×0.5um的数字比特，这是传统永磁合金磁头无法记录的。本项目的目标和方法如下：1)在Ar+N_2+NH_3等离子体中，通过反应溅射和Fe靶在陶瓷衬底上原位生长巨磁矩a“相Fe16N_2薄膜。研究了生长参数和衬底对所得薄膜的物相、微结构和磁性的影响。2)用新材料制造磁写入头，磁道宽度为0.5um。电子束光刻和反应离子束刻蚀将被用于制造亚微米磁性结构。3)用磁力显微镜(MFM)和带自旋分析的扫描电子显微镜(SEMPA)研究了这种磁头的磁畴结构。录音性能将通过行业合作进行评估。***

9409805 Wang Magnetic disk drives are the dominant mass storage devices for computers. In order to meet the storage demand for image processing, massively parallel computing and multimedia, the areal recording densities of the disk drives need to be raised from currently 200 Megabits/inch2 to beyond 10 Gigabits/inch2, an increase of about two orders of magnitude. To reach this goal, a key technology for designing and fabricating high moment, submicron trackwidth, magnetic write heads are required to record digital bits with a size of about 0.1 um x 0.5 um on high coercivity magnetic disks which cannot be recorded with conventional Pemalloy magnetic heads. The objectives and methods of the project are as follows; 1) Grow giant moment a" phase Fe16N2 films on ceramic substrates by reactively sputtering and Fe target in Ar + N2 + NH3 plasma, with controlled in-situ substrate temperatures. The effects of growth parameters and substrates on the phases, microstructures, and magnetic properties of the films obtained will be explored. 2) Fabricate magnetic write heads with the new material, and with a trackwidth 0.5 um. Electron-beam lithography and reactive ion beam etching will be used to fabricate submicron magnetic structures. 3) Investigate magnetic domain structures of such heads with magnetic force microscopy (MFM) and scanning electron microscopy with spin analysis (SEMPA). Recording performance will be evaluated with industrial collaboration. ***