Abstract: Recordable/erasable optical storage media are disclosed. The medium of the present invention generally comprises a rigid substrate, an expansion layer, a retention layer, and a dual-metal reflective layer. A single, active layer may be substituted for the expansion and retention layers. A protective layer may or may not be present. The dual-metal reflective layer comprises a first metal sublayer and a second metal sublayer with a graded first metal/second metal alloy at the interface of the first metal sublayer and the second metal sublayer. Methods for applying the dual-metal reflective layer to a polymer-coated substrate and substrates produced by such methods are also provided.