Structural stability of nanometer thick diamond-like carbon films subjected to heating for thermally assisted magnetic recording

In this study, the structural stability of ultra-thin diamond-like carbon (DLC) films subjected to heating was investigated experimentally. The thermal robustness of nanometer thick DLC films for thermally assisted magnetic recording was demonstrated, and their damage mechanisms were elucidated using chemical vapor deposition and filtered cathodic vacuum arc DLC films. In addition, the refractivity of disk substrates with heated DLC thin films was evaluated using a scanning microellipsometer. This measurement system is suggested to be an effective method for evaluating the thermal stability of DLC films. The effect of the heating duration on the thermal stability of DLC films was also investigated by this method. Further, it was suggested that DLC thin films on an air bearing surface may be affected by laser heating because this surface may be heated for a significantly longer duration owing to the magnetic head read/write operation. However, the DLC thin films on the disk substrate may not be affected as severely by laser heating.