Abstract: A magnetic recording medium comprises, on a substrate, a recording auxiliary layer, a recording holding layer, recording control layer, and a recording layer. The recording layer is constructed by using a ferri-magnetic material having perpendicular magnetization. The data can be recorded at a super high density by using the recording and reproducing head of the present invention, because the recording layer has the perpendicular magnetization. The disappearance of data, which would be otherwise caused by the thermomagnetic relaxation phenomenon, is suppressed after recording the data, because the recording layer has large coercive force at the room temperature. The data, which is recorded at the super high density on the magnetic recording medium, can be reproduced by using a magnetic resistance element carried on the recording and reproducing head.

Abstract: An information recording medium and a reading method thereof for realizing high density recording and recording/reading a direction of magnetization at minute bit length and bit width, which comprises a substrate having a first magnetic layer which is capable of thermo-magnetically recording and a second magnetic layer which is capable of being exchange coupled with the first magnetic layer formed thereon in this order, is performed by detecting a direction of magnetization transferred onto the second magnetic layer from variations in magnetic flux while emitting a light beam thereon.