Investigation of Electro- and Magnetooptic Techniques for Information Storage and Retrieval

摘要

A program of research on materials for high density information storage and retrieval was conducted, with emphasis on the fabrication of thin films of MnBi. This intermetallic compound is ferromagnetic, with its axis of easy magnetization along its hexagonal c-axis. Polycrystalline films of this material generally show a strongly preferred orientation, with the c-axis normal to the plane of the film. Such a configuration is ideal for the employment of magneto-optical read-out systems. Major problems exist in the control of nucleation and growth of suitably oriented MnBi, and it was here that maximum effort was made. Several fabrication techniques were tried, including physical sputtering, grain-by-grain flash evaporation of both mixed powders and preformed alloy powder, and sequential evaporation schemes. The latter method gave the best results in spite of problems in interlayer diffusion and compound formation. (Author)