Vapor Lubrication of Magnetic Data Storage Media

提出了一个研究计划，解决了一些关键的摩擦学问题，出现在磁性数据存储介质的润滑。随着存储在硬盘表面上的数据的面密度的增加，读写磁头和磁盘表面之间的差距必须减小。差距目前为20 nm，预测是为了以1 Tbit/in^2的密度存储数据，间隙差距必须减小到5 nm。在磁盘表面上的液体润滑剂薄膜（1 - 2nm）对于在间歇高速磁头-磁盘接触期间保护磁盘表面是关键的。随着磁头和磁盘之间的差距减小，对该润滑膜的性能的要求增加，并且其特性的公差变得越来越紧。拟议的研究计划探讨了一些必须理解的基本科学问题，以便开发一种新的气相方法，在高度控制的真空条件下将润滑剂应用于磁盘表面。拟议的研究计划是一个行业和大学的合作，将开发的物理化学的理解，润滑油膜的性质沉积在新鲜溅射的无定形碳覆盖介质表面的外套。这项研究是通过一个新建成的装置，模拟气相沉积过程，同时也允许研究的表面特性和表面化学的润滑油膜气相沉积到无定形碳（a-C）的外套。将研究新溅射的a-C外涂层的氧化，以确定氧化动力学，并确定暴露于O2和H2O期间在a-C表面上产生的一些物种。将研究氟化醚和醇与新鲜和氧化的a-C膜的吸附，以了解全氟聚烷基醚（PFPE）润滑剂与新鲜和氧化的a-C表面的结合。最后，PFPE润滑剂本身的表面化学和表面性质将在新鲜和氧化的a-C表面上进行研究。 了解PFPE润滑剂在新沉积的a-C膜和暴露于空气中的a-C膜上的差异是必要的，以帮助蒸汽润滑过程的发展及其向实践的过渡。 拟议项目的影响远远超出了对新兴蒸汽润滑技术基础科学的基本理解。拟议的研究将对技术本身产生直接影响，PI与数据存储行业的联系将使工作结果直接传播给数据存储行业的科学家和工程师，他们将把这项技术转移到商业领域。这项技术的快速发展将有助于美国数据存储行业在竞争极其激烈的领域保持领先地位。PI，co-PI和学生每季度与信息存储行业联盟（INSIC）的成员和卡内基梅隆大学数据存储系统中心（DSSC）的成员会面。这些会议作为研究成果的传播和行业反馈的场所，同时也为教育，培训和让学生接触数据存储的发展提供了极好的机会。

A research program is proposed that addresses a number of critical tribological issues that arise in the lubrication of magnetic data storage media. As the areal density of data stored on hard disk surfaces increases, the gap between the read-write head and the disk surface must decrease. The gap is currently 20 nm and predictions are that in order to store data at densities of 1 Tbit/in^2 the gap will have to be reduced to 5 nm. A thin film (1 - 2 nm) of liquid lubricant on the disk surface is critical for protection of the disk surface during intermittent high speed head-disk contacts. As the gap between the head and the disk decreases, the demands on the performance of this lubricant film increase and the tolerances on its characteristics grow tighter and tighter. The proposed research program explores some of the fundamental scientific issues that must be understood in order to develop a new vapor phase method for applying lubricant to the disk surface under highly controlled vacuum conditions. The proposed research program is an industry-university collaboration that will develop the physico-chemical understanding of the properties of lubricant films deposited on the freshly sputtered amorphous carbon overcoats that cover the media surface. This research is made possible by a newly built apparatus that emulates the vapor deposition process while also allowing study of the surface properties and the surface chemistry of lubricant films vapor deposited onto amorphous carbon (a-C) overcoats. Oxidation of freshly sputtered a-C overcoats will be studied in order to determine the kinetics of oxidation and to identify some of the species produced on the a-C surface during exposure to O2 and H2O. The adsorption of fluorinated ethers and alcohols with fresh and oxidized a-C films will be studied in order to understand the bonding of perfluoropolyalkylether (PFPE) lubricants with fresh and oxidized a-C surfaces. Finally, the surface chemistry and surface properties of PFPE lubricants themselves will be studied on the surfaces of fresh and oxidized a-C surfaces. Understanding the differences between PFPE lubricants on the freshly deposited a-C films and air-exposed a-C films is needed in order to help the development of the vapor lubrication process and its transition into practice. The impact of the proposed project extends quite broadly beyond the development of a fundamental understanding of the science underlying the emerging technology of vapor lubrication. The proposed research will have a direct impact on the technology itself and the PI's connections with the data storage industry will enable the results of the work to be directly disseminated to the scientists and engineers within the data storage industry who will transfer this technology into the commercial sector. The rapid development of this technology will help the U.S. data storage industry to maintain its leadership position in an extremely competitive sector. The PI, the co-PIs and students meet quarterly with the members of the Information Storage Industries Consortium (INSIC) and with the members of Carnegie Mellon's Data Storage Systems Center (DSSC). These meetings serve as venues for dissemination of research results and for feedback from industry while also providing an excellent opportunity for educating, training, and exposing students to developments in data storage.