Patterned soft underlayers for perpendicular media

Perpendicular recording may be the most viable, near future, replacement for the longitudinal core technology in ultrahigh-density magnetic disk storage. Central to this mode of recording is a soft underlayer (SUL) which facilitates flux flow between writer poles, and is responsible for an effective increase in recording field. However, there are controversies concerning the effectiveness and limitations of using soft underlayers; among which are readback noise and inadequate switching torque. Patterned SUL is proposed as a new and viable approach to SUL limitations in perpendicular media, with improved system performance. Numerical models have been developed using commercially available FEM and BEM software suites (ANSYS and Ampere) to demonstrate key advantages of patterned SUL in perpendicular media.