A Theoretical Analysis of Saturation Magnetic Recording

A theoretical analysis of the saturation magnetic recording process is presented. The approach is based on the complete characterization of an isolated magnetization transition on the recording surface. The effects of the writing process, demagnetization, recording surface thickness, transducer-to-medium spacing, and readback transducer resolution are considered in calculating the exact pulse shape read back from such an isolated magnetization transition. The theory predicts the significance of each individual parameter that affects the pulse amplitude and resolution of digital recording systems. The theoretical predictions are compared with experimental results measured over a wide range of recording surface properties, and the agreement is excellent. The theory is also in excellent agreement with correlations between magnetic and recording properties that heretofore have been established by experiment alone.