Highly (001)-oriented thin continuous L10 FePt films for bit patterned media

We demonstrate a highly (001)-oriented thin continuous FePt film by introducing an FeO
_x
cap layer. The agglomeration in capped FePt films is significantly suppressed by inhibiting the surface diffusion, which then yields a desired continuous film with a narrowed (001) out-of-plane angular distribution. Through the promoted interdiffusion of Fe and Pt by the reduction of Fe oxides during annealing, we successfully maintain a (001) L1
₀
phase while suppressing the agglomeration in FePt films. By utilizing this continuous FePt film and template of diblock copolymer, we obtain FePt dot arrays with an average dot diameter of 25 nm.