Aspects of the present disclosure provide a heat assisted magnetic recording HAMR media structure and methods for reducing the Curie temperature distribution to improve the signal-to-noise characteristics of HAMR media. A magnetic recording medium includes a substrate, a heat sink layer on the substrate, and a magnetic recording layer on the heat sink layer. The magnetic recording layer includes a plurality of magnetic recording grains configured for recording and comprising a first magnetic alloy. The magnetic recording layer further includes a plurality of segregants disposed to isolate the plurality of magnetic recording grains and comprising a second magnetic alloy. A Curie temperature of the second magnetic alloy is higher than a Curie temperature of the first magnetic alloy.

A substrate for a magnetic disk has a disk shape. The substrate has a diameter D of 85 mm or more and a thickness T of 0.6 mm or less. When an impact is applied to the substrate under conditions of 70 (G) and 2 (msec) in a normal direction of main surfaces of the substrate in a state in which an inner circumferential end portion of the substrate is fixed, the maximum amplitude of vibration in a thickness direction of an outer circumferential end portion of the substrate is 0.25 mm or less, the substrate is a non-magnetic metal substrate, and regarding the Young's modulus E and the thickness T of the substrate, a value of E.Math.T.sup.3 is 3 to 18 (GPa.Math.mm.sup.3).

A magnetic recording medium includes a substrate, an underlayer disposed above the substrate, and a first magnetic layer disposed above the underlayer. The first magnetic layer has a granular structure including magnetic grains having a L1.sub.0 structure, and grain boundaries. A content of the grain boundaries is in a range of 25 volume percent to 50 volume percent, and the grain boundaries include a chalcogenide-based layered material.

A sputtering target according to the present invention contains Co and one or more metals selected from the group consisting of Cr and Ru, as metal components, wherein a molar ratio of the content of the one or more metals to the content of Co is ½ or more, and wherein the sputtering target contains Nb.sub.2O.sub.5 as a metal oxide component.

A substrate for a magnetic disk includes a substrate main body having two main surfaces and an outer circumferential edge surface, and a film that is an alloy film containing Ni and P and provided on a surface of the substrate main body. A disk shape of the substrate main body has an outer diameter of 90 mm or more. A thickness T of the substrate that includes film thicknesses of sections of the film provided on the main surfaces is 0.520 mm or less. A total thickness D mm, which is a sum of the film thicknesses of the sections of the film on the main surfaces and the thickness T mm satisfy D≥0.0082/T−0.0015. A surface roughness maximum height Rz of the film provided on the outer circumferential edge surface is smaller than that of the substrate main body at the outer circumferential edge surface.

A magnetic recording medium includes a substrate, an underlayer disposed above the substrate, and a first magnetic layer disposed above the underlayer. The first magnetic layer has a granular structure including magnetic grains having a L1.sub.0 structure, and grain boundaries. A content of the grain boundaries is in a range of 25 volume percent to 50 volume percent, and the grain boundaries include a chalcogenide-based layered material.

A substrate for a magnetic disk includes a substrate main body having two main surfaces, and a film that is provided on the main surfaces and is made of a material having a loss factor of 0.01 or more. The substrate for a magnetic disk including the film has a thickness T of 0.700 mm or less, and a thickness D [mm] of the film provided on the main surfaces and the thickness T [mm] of the substrate for a magnetic disk including the film satisfy a relationship D≥0.0082/T−0.0015.

A non magnetic substrate for a magnetic disk includes a substrate main body having two opposing main surfaces and being a glass substrate main body or an aluminum alloy substrate main body, and a metal film made of an Ni—P alloy and provided on the main surfaces and an outer circumferential edge surface of the substrate main body. The non magnetic substrate has a thickness (T+D) of 0.57 mm or less, which is the sum of a thickness T of the substrate main body and a thickness D of the metal film. The non magnetic substrate has a diameter of 90 mm or more. A ratio D/T is 0.025 or more. The outer circumferential edge surface of the substrate main body forming an interface with the metal film has a surface roughness maximum height Rz of 0.5 μm or more.

A magnetic recording medium is provided and includes a magnetic layer, a non-magnetic layer, a base layer and a back layer, wherein an average thickness t.sub.T of the magnetic recording medium is t.sub.T≤5.3 a dimensional change amount Δw in a width direction with respect to a change in tension in a longitudinal direction is 700 ppm/N≤Δw, a thickness of the non-magnetic layer is 2.0 μm or less, a squareness ratio measured in a vertical direction of the magnetic recording medium is 65% or more, and the magnetic layer includes a magnetic powder.

A disk-shaped substrate for a magnetic disk has a diameter D of 85 mm or more and a thickness T of 0.6 mm or less, and a material of the substrate has a Young's modulus E of 90 GPa or more.