Abstract: An optical disk includes a plurality of information units, each of which has a pit array made up of a phase pit on an information track and phase pits surrounding the phase pit. With this structure, information can be recorded at high density, and recorded information can be reproduced from the optical disk under stable conditions.

Abstract: A magneto-optical recording medium includes at least a first magnetic layer, a second magnetic layer and a third magnetic layer which are layered in this order, the first magnetic layer being formed of a perpendicularly magnetized film having a relatively small wall coercivity and a relatively large wall mobility compared with the third magnetic layer in the vicinity of a predetermined temperature, and the magneto-optical recording medium satisfies conditions Tc2<Tcomp1<Tc1 and Tc2<Tcomp1<Tc3 where Tcomp1 is a compensation temperature of the first magnetic layer, Tc1, Tc2 and Tc3 are Curie temperatures of the first, second and third magnetic layers, respectively.

Abstract: A method for forming micropatterns includes forming a thin film consisting of a single layer or of plural layers on a substrate, irradiating an energy beam to the thin film to elevate the temperature of a region to a predetermined temperature or higher to thereby modify the region of the thin film, and patterning the thin film at least in such a manner to leave over the modified region.

Abstract: A method for forming micropatterns includes forming a thin film consisting of a single layer or of plural layers on a substrate, irradiating an energy beam to the thin film to elevate the temperature of a region to a predetermined temperature or higher to thereby modify the region of the thin film, and patterning the thin film at least in such a manner to leave over the modified region.

Abstract: An optical disk includes a plurality of disk sheets which are laminated, and each of which has a recording face on one of the surfaces and a flat back surface, wherein the plurality of disk sheets are laminated by adhesive layers in such a manner that between adjacent two disk sheets, a back surface of one of the disk sheets, on the opposite side of the surface where the recording face is formed, faces the disk surface of the other disk sheet. The foregoing structure realizes an optical disk of desirable recording/reproducing characteristics, which is flat and has a fixed interval between recording faces, and which permits the problems of coma aberration, spherical aberration, etc., to be suppressed.

Abstract: A recording and reproducing device of the present invention is provided to achieve the object of realizing stable and desirable recording and reproducing of information by suppressing fluttering of an optical disk by way of suppressing pressure fluctuation which is caused, for example, when an objective lens or an optical pickup with the objective lens is moved. The object is attained by a transparent stabilizer, provided between a disk and an optical pickup, which is moved with the optical pickup, and a slider which is provided to face the transparent stabilizer with the disk in between. The slider is supported to oscillate, and the surface of the slider facing the disk is flat. During rotation of the disk, the slider moves to balance the air pressure between the transparent stabilizer and the disk with that between the slider and the disk.

Abstract: A disc recording element is provided with a disc substrate having a hole at its center, a circular information recording area on its surface that is concentric with the hole. A hub is fitted to the hole. The disc substrate has a relief portion thereon for position alignment of the hub.

Abstract: An optical recording medium includes a substrate having groove and land areas, in which address pits having substantially the same depth and which are formed deeper than the groove area are provided. By thus forming the address pits deeper than the groove area, address information can be reproduced accurately, and the optical recording medium can readily be manufactured by making the address pits which are respectively formed in the groove and land areas to have substantially the same depth.

Abstract: A magneto-optical recording medium is provided with at least: a recording layer, made of a perpendicular magnetization film, in which magnetized information is recorded in the form of a perpendicular direction of magnetization; a magnetic flux generating layer, made of a perpendicular magnetization film, which is exchange-coupled with the recording layer; and a read-out layer, having a perpendicular magnetization at a predetermined temperature or higher temperatures than the predetermined temperature, which copies the magnetized information of the recording layer by magneto-static coupling with the magnetic flux generating layer and the recording layer, wherein the magnetic flux generating layer is a magnetic film having a lower Curie temperature than that of the recording layer and having a larger total magnetization than that of the recording layer at a temperature at which the read-out layer has a perpendicular magnetization.

Abstract: Featured is a magneto-optical storage medium including: a first magnetic layer constituted by a perpendicularly magnetized film; a second magnetic layer constituted by a perpendicularly magnetized film so as to be exchange coupled to the first magnetic layer; and a third magnetic layer magnetostatically coupled to the first and second magnetic layers at elevated temperatures, magnetization of the first magnetic layer being copied to the third magnetic layer. The second magnetic layer produces a greater peak net magnetization, has a higher Curie temperature than the first magnetic layer and produces a leaking magnetic flux. The structure enhances magnetostatic coupling forces acting between the first magnetic layer and the second magnetic layer and also between the first magnetic layer and the third magnetic layer.

Abstract: A magneto-optical storage medium includes: a reproduction magnetic layer exhibiting in-plane magnetization at room temperature and changing to perpendicular magnetization at a critical temperature or higher; first and second in-plane magnetized layers with Curie temperatures in a proximity of the critical temperature and exhibiting mutually opposite magnetic polarities; and a recording magnetic layer fabricated from a perpendicularly magnetized film, the reproduction magnetic layer, the first and second in-plane magnetized layers, and the recording magnetic layer being sequentially deposited, wherein the reproduction magnetic layer is exchange-coupled with the first and second in-plane magnetized layers at least at room temperature.

Abstract: Featured is a recording and reproducing method of a magneto-optical recording medium including a recording layer for recording thereon information magneto-optically and a readout layer which has in-plane magnetization at room temperature and where a transition occurs from in-plane magnetization to perpendicular magnetization as temperature raises. The method includes projecting a light beam onto such a magneto-optical recording medium so as to form a perpendicularly magnetized area in the readout layer by duplication of the magnetization of said recording layer to the area. In further embodiments, the recording medium further includes an intermediate layer made of non-magnetic film formed between the readout and recording layers and the readout and recording layers are composed of rare-earth transition metal alloys such as TbFeCo (recoding layer) readout layer, made of GdFeCo (readout layer).

Abstract: In the present invention, in a pre-recorded information recording region on an optical disk capable of recording in both a land and a groove, a first address region is displaced off a second address region along the length of the track. Address information is stored by a first pit string P1 following a groove G1 in the first address region and by a second pit string P2 following a groove G2 in the second address region. The first pit string P1 and the second pit string P2 are adapted so that the gaps between pits constituting those strings in accordance with address information are equal to, or less than, the width of the pits measured in a radial direction of the disk. Thus, the present invention offers an optical disk and a recording/reproducing device which effect a stable tracking control.

Abstract: A magneto-optical recording medium is composed of a base which has a property that a light can be transmitted therethrough, a readout layer formed on the base, which has in-plane magnetization at room temperature, whereas, a transition occurs from in-plane magnetization to perpendicular magnetization as the temperature thereof is raised and a recording layer formed on the readout layer for recording information magneto-optically. A recording and reproducing method and the optical head are designed for the magneto-optical recording medium. By the recording and reproducing method using the optical head, information recorded at high density can be reproduced.

Abstract: The magneto-optical storage medium includes: a reproduction layer exhibiting in-plane magnetization at room temperature and changing to perpendicular magnetization above a transition temperature Tp1; a first in-plane magnetized layer disposed adjacent the reproduction layer and constituted by an in-plane magnetized film having a Curie temperature Tc2 around the transition temperature Tp1; a storage layer constituted by a perpendicularly magnetized film for storing information; and at least one supplementary reproduction section, interposed between the storage layer and the first in-plane magnetized layer, constituted by a first supplementary reproduction layer and a second in-plane magnetized layer, the first supplementary reproduction layer exhibiting in-plane magnetization at room temperature and changing to perpendicular magnetization above a transition temperature Tp3, the second in-plane magnetized layer being disposed adjacent the first supplementary reproduction layer and constituted by an in-pla

Abstract: An optical recording medium includes a substrate having groove and land areas, in which address pits having substantially the same depth and which are formed deeper than the groove area are provided. By thus forming the address pits deeper than the groove area, address information can be reproduced accurately, and the optical recording medium can readily be manufactured by making the address pits which are respectively formed in the groove and land areas to have substantially the same depth.

Abstract: A magneto-optical recording medium includes at least: a reproducing magnetic layer composed at least of Gd and Co showing an in-plane magnetization state at room temperature and a transition to a perpendicular magnetization state at temperatures of not lower than a critical temperature; and a recording magnetic layer formed of a perpendicular magnetization film, the reproducing magnetic layer and the recording magnetic layer being magneto-statically coupled at least in the vicinity of the critical temperature, the reproducing magnetic layer containing at least either Tb or Dy so as to increase the total magnetization at a temperature at which a perpendicular magnetic anisotropy constant and a diamagnetic field energy are equal to each other.

Abstract: An optical recording medium includes a substrate having groove and land areas, in which address pits having substantially the same depth and which are formed deeper than the groove area are provided. By thus forming the address pits deeper than the groove area, address information can be reproduced accurately, and the optical recording medium can readily be manufactured by making the address pits which are respectively formed in the groove and land areas to have substantially the same depth.

Abstract: An optical read/write apparatus causes a read/write light beam from illuminating means to strike only one side of an optical storage medium including stacked data storage layers each of which is readable/writeable separately from the other layers. In this case, the optical read/write apparatus operates so that data is read/written from/into a second data storage layer after fully recording a recordable area of a first data storage layer. Thus, light can be shone with uniform intensity across the substantially entire recordable area of the second data storage layer without using a complex read/write system even under such conditions that the transmittance to light of the first data storage layer in the recordable area may vary depending on whether any data is recorded in the recordable area.

Abstract: Featured is a recording and reproducing method for recording and reproducing information on and from a recording medium. The medium includes a base having a property that a light can be transmitted therethrough, a readout layer formed on the base, which has an in-plane magnetization at room temperature, whereas, a transition occurs from in-plane magnetization to perpendicular magnetization as temperature rises and a recording layer formed on said readout layer for recording thereon information magneto-optically. A groove for guiding a light beam is formed on a readout layer side of the base and a groove width is set substantially equal to a land width formed between grooves. The recording layer on the grooves and the recording layer on lands are used in recording and reproducing information.