Commercialization of bit-patterned media

Abstract

Realm of data storage density has expanded from gigabyte- to terabyte-domain. In such a high areal density, bit-patterned media is a promising candidate to overcome the superparamagnetic limit faced by the conventional continuous media. However, the patterned media concept has not been realized in mass production due to several reasons. Beside the stringent requirement of high-resolution lithography, high production cost is inevitably the major challenging problem. If a low-cost mass fabrication scheme is available, bit-patterned media will be an innovative way in hard disk technology to achieve a storage density beyond 1 Tb/in². The objective of this thesis is to review the patterned media technology and discuss its challenges and commercialization viability. A possible mass-production scheme is discussed. Electron beam lithography and self assembly process of block copolymer are used to fabricate the master template. To ensure high throughput, template replication as well as disk fabrication are carried out by UV-nanoimprint lithography (UV-NIL). Considering the large opportunity of patterned media to enter the market, a business plan was constructed. Enormous profit was proved to be possible when the barrier of technology, intellectual property, and funding can be surpassed. Therefore, patterned media shows to be superior in terms of performance and cost compared to the conventional media.