Correlation of macromagnetic properties with recording performance measurements in advanced metal particle tape

In this work we present measurements of the macromagnetic properties and associated recording performance, for two different metal particle tape samples, which are proposed to be used in a high density helical scan recording system. Data in such a system is recorded along two channels, which are oriented at −14° and +26° to the parallel/machine direction. It is thus important to measure the angular variation in the magnetic properties, in particular along the recording channel directions, and to correlate these measurements with the recording performance. In addition, care should be taken that the properties of the recording channels are similar to avoid any imbalance in the read back signal between the two channels. We show that, when a choice of the “best” media is made, it may be advantageous to perform more detailed macromagnetic measurements within the sample plane. In particular, measurements along the recording channel orientations should be undertaken, as it is found that these will highlight differences between the characteristics of the two channels. We conclude that a more detailed analysis of the magnetic behavior within the sample plane is required to predict any channel imbalance which may arise.