For a further high capacity, provided is a sputtering target for a magnetic recording medium that can form a magnetic thin film having enhanced uniaxial magnetic anisotropy, reduced intergranular exchange coupling, and improved thermal stability and SNR (signal-to-noise ratio).

The sputtering target for a magnetic recording medium, comprises: a metal phase containing Pt and at least one or more selected from Cu and Ni, with the balance being Co and incidental impurities; and an oxide phase containing at least B.sub.2O.sub.3.

A sputtering target according to the present invention contains Co and Pt as metal components, wherein a molar ratio of a content of Pt to a content of Co is from 5/100 to 45/100, and wherein the sputtering target contains Nb.sub.2O.sub.5 as a metal oxide component.

A sputtering target according to the present invention contains Co and Pt as metal components, wherein a molar ratio of a content of Pt to a content of Co is from 5/100 to 45/100, and wherein the sputtering target contains Nb.sub.2O.sub.5 as a metal oxide component.

[Object] To provide a sputtering target with further improved sputtering efficiency, and a method of producing the sputtering target.

[Solving Means] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a sputtering target according to an embodiment of the present invention is a cobalt target having a sputtering surface and a purity of 99.95 wt % or more. An intensity ratio (I.sub.(002)+I.sub.(004))/(I.sub.(100)+I.sub.(002)+I.sub.(101)+I.sub.(102)+I.sub.(110)+I.sub.(103)+I.sub.(112)+I.sub.(004)) of X-ray diffraction peaks corresponding to a (100) plane, a (002) plane, a (101) plane, a (102) plane, a (110) plane, a (103) plane, a (112) plane, and a (004) plane of a hexagonal close-packed lattice structure along the sputtering surface is 0.85 or more.

The object of the present invention is to attain an unconventionally high tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) ratio by using a barrier layer made of an MgAl.sub.2O.sub.4 type insulator material with a spinel structure. The problem can be solved by a magnetic tunnel junction in which a barrier layer is made of a cubic nonmagnetic material having a spinel structure, and both of two ferromagnetic layers that are adjacently on and below the barrier layer are made of a Co.sub.2FeAl Heusler alloy. Preferably, the nonmagnetic material is made of oxide of an Mg.sub.1-31 xAl.sub.x (0<x≤1) alloy, and exhibits tunnel magnetoresistance of 250% or more and 34000% or less at a room temperature.

Provided is an FePt based magnetic material sintered compact, comprising BN and SiO.sub.2 as non-magnetic materials, wherein Si and O are present in a region where B or N is present at a cut surface of the sintered compact. A high density sputtering target is provided which enables production of a magnetic thin film for heat-assisted magnetic recording media, and also reduces the amount of particles generated during sputtering.

A method for manufacturing a vertically-laminated ferromagnetic core includes (a) depositing a conductive seed layer on or over a first side of a substrate; (b) depositing a masking layer on or over a second side of the substrate, the first and second sides on opposite sides of the substrate; (c) forming a pattern in the masking layer; (d) dry etching the substrate, based on the pattern in the masking layer, from the second side to the first side to expose portions of the conductive seed layer; and (e) depositing a ferromagnetic material onto the exposed portions of the conductive seed layer to form vertically-oriented ferromagnetic layers.

Methods and apparatus for a magnetized substrate carrier apparatus are described herein. In some embodiments, a substrate carrier apparatus includes: a carrier plate having a support surface to support a substrate, a mask assembly disposed above the support surface, wherein the mask assembly includes an annular frame and a shadow mask disposed within the annular frame, and wherein the shadow mask includes one or more openings arranged in a predetermined pattern and disposed through the shadow mask, and one or more magnets disposed on or embedded within at least one of the carrier plate and the shadow mask to create a magnetic field above the support surface.

Methods and apparatus for a magnetized substrate carrier apparatus are described herein. In some embodiments, a substrate carrier apparatus includes: a carrier plate having a support surface to support a substrate, a mask assembly disposed above the support surface, wherein the mask assembly includes an annular frame and a shadow mask disposed within the annular frame, and wherein the shadow mask includes one or more openings arranged in a predetermined pattern and disposed through the shadow mask, and one or more magnets disposed on or embedded within at least one of the carrier plate and the shadow mask to create a magnetic field above the support surface.

A method for forming a CoFeSiBPd alloy thin film exhibiting perpendicular magnetic anisotropy includes: simultaneously sputtering a CoFeSiB target and a Pd target inside a vacuum chamber to form a CoFeSiBPd alloy thin film on a substrate disposed inside the vacuum chamber; and annealing the substrate, on which the CoFeSiBPd alloy thin film is formed, to exhibit perpendicular magnetic anisotropy.