1st Edition

Ultra-High-Density Magnetic Recording Storage Materials and Media Designs

Edited By Gaspare Varvaro, Francesca Casoli Copyright 2016
    544 Pages 51 Color & 189 B/W Illustrations
    by Jenny Stanford Publishing

    Today magnetic recording is still the leading technology for mass data storage. Its dominant role is being reinforced by the success of cloud computing, which requires storing and managing huge amounts of data on a multitude of servers. Nonetheless, the hard-disk storage industry is presently at a crossroads as the current magnetic recording technologies are unable of achieving densities beyond 1 Tbit/in2.

    Pushing the recording density in the terabit regime requires new storage materials, novel recording schemes, and media designs in order to solve signal-to-noise ratio, thermal stability, and writability issues. In this book, worldwide experts from universities, public research institutions, and industry collaborate to illustrate the most recent progresses in magnetic recording from the media perspective and to highlight the future prospects of the technology. Theoretical, experimental, and technological aspects are covered in a clear and comprehensive way, making the book a useful reference for final-year undergraduates, postgraduates, and research professionals in the magnetic recording area.

    The first two chapters introduce the fundamentals of magnetism and magnetic recording and are useful to guide the reader in the chapters that follow. Chapters 3, 4, and 5 focus on the materials for conventional perpendicular recording media, next-generation recording media, and exchange-coupled composite media. The most promising technologies for next-generation magnetic recording, i.e., energy assisted and bit-patterned recording, are extensively treated in chapters 6 and 7, while chapter 8 covers the techniques and protocols for magnetic characterization of recording media. Finally, chapter 9 gives an overview of the emerging classes of magnetic memories.

    Fundamentals of Magnetism. Hard-Disk Drives: Fundamentals and Perspectives. Conventional Perpendicular Magnetic Recording Media. Exchange-Coupled Composite Media. Energy-Assisted Magnetic Recording. FePt Granular Nanostructures for Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording Media. Bit-Patterned Magnetic Recording. Magnetic Characterization of Perpendicular Recording Media. New Trends in Magnetic Memories.

    Biography

    Gaspare Varvaro is a research scientist at the Institute for Structure of Matter of the Italian National Research Council (ISM-CNR). He obtained his PhD in materials science (preparation and investigation of CoPt films for ultrahigh-density magnetic recording media) from La Sapienza University in 2007. His main research interest is in the study of magnetic properties of nanostructured single-phase and composite materials (thin films, multilayers, nanoparticles, nanopatterned systems) for fundamental studies and applications (information storage, energy, sensors, biomedicine). He is the author of more than 30 peer-reviewed papers and 1 book chapter on the subject.

    Francesca Casoli is a research scientist at the Institute of Materials for Electronics and Magnetism (IMEM-CNR). She obtained her PhD in physics from the University of Parma in 2005, investigating magnetic thin films and multilayers with perpendicular anisotropy and exchange-spring properties. Her main research interest is in the design and study of magnetic thin films, nanostructures, and nanocomposites with new functional properties. She has published more than 50 peer-reviewed papers on the correlation between nanoscale structure and magnetic properties in materials for magnetic recording, sensors/actuators, and biomedicine.

    "The book is planned and executed well and a good addition to Developments in Data Storage, which I wrote five years ago. It covers in detail the developments in magnetic recording in the past five years. The authors have chosen from a good mix of industry and academia. The book is highly recommended for engineers and users interested in recent developments in magnetic recording."
    —S. N. Piramanayagam, Associate Professor, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

    "This book summarizes recent developments in various potential technologies for the next generation of magnetic recording, especially recording media, and shares good experiences of industry practices. Some of the emerging candidates of magnetic memories for future information memory are also reviewed. It is a good reference book for researchers in magnetic recording as well as postgraduate students."
    Dr. Baoxi Xu, Senior Scientist, Data Storage Institute (DSI), Singapore

    "Given the worldwide explosion of data generation in recent years, hard disk drives remain highly relevant devices for data storage and management. This book brings us up to date on magnetic information storage materials and technology, encompassing both hard disk drives and memories. The chapters are expertly written and cover a wide range of topics from the basics of magnetism, fundamentals of hard disk drives, and current and future magnetic media technologies to the latest in magnetic memories. It will serve beginners well and is also a welcome addition to the library of professionals in the field."
    —Kumar Srinivasan, Senior Principal Engineer, Western Digital, Irvine, USA