MAGNETIC AND MICROSTRUCTURAL PROPERTIES OF COCRPT COCRPTSI DUAL-LAYERED MAGNETIC RECORDING MEDIA/

The magnetic properties of CoCrPt/CoCrPtSi dual-magnetic-layered thin films are investigated in terms of the crystalline microstructures usi ng a vibrating-sample magnometer, transmission electron microscope, an d scanning electron microscope. The magnetic crystal grains of the fil ms are aligned with forming chainlike clusters. Each stacked magnetic crystal grain is epitaxially grown on individually isolated columnar C r crystals with a relationship of hCP (1011BAR)Co-based alloy //bcC (1 10)Cr. The direction of magnetic easy axes of two stacked magnetic cry stals are aligned in a same direction. Single-crystalline dual-magneti c-layered thin films, which are epitaxially grown on MgO(110) single-c rystal substrates, are prepared to estimate the K(u) of the dual-layer ed magnetic grains. The K(u) is determined to be 4 x 10(6) erg/CM3, Wh ose value is about 2 times as large as that of single-layered CoCrPtSi . This large anisotropy energy is presumed to lead the increase of H(c ) in the dual-layered magnetic films.