Recording media research for future hard disk drives

Perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) technology has recently been introduced in hard disk drives (HDDs) by almost all the HDD manufacturers. It is expected that because of PMR technology, the superparamagnetic limit can be circumvented until around 2012. At this stage, it is necessary to seek out alternatives to extend the current PMR technology, or to invent new alternatives to move beyond the PMR technology. There are several research opportunities becoming available, as we try to extend the competitive advantage of magnetic recording. This article is an attempt to provide a brief review of the research that has been carried out, interspersed with an analysis of possible new directions.