A magnetic recording tape, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, includes a substrate, an underlayer formed above the substrate, and a magnetic recording layer formed above the underlayer. The underlayer includes first encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a first magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by a first aromatic polymer, and a first polymeric binder binding the first encapsulated nanoparticles. The recording layer includes second encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a second magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by an encapsulating layer, and a second polymeric binder binding the second encapsulated nanoparticles.

Provided are a magnetic recording medium including a non-magnetic support, and a magnetic layer including a ferromagnetic powder. The ferromagnetic powder is an ε-iron oxide powder, and an intensity ratio (Int1/Int2) of diffraction intensities obtained by an X-ray diffraction analysis of the magnetic layer using an In-Plane method is 1.0 or more and 6.5 or less; and a magnetic tape cartridge and a magnetic recording and reproducing device each including the magnetic recording medium.

A base for a magnetic recording medium, includes an aluminum alloy substrate, and a nickel alloy film provided on at least one principal surface of the aluminum alloy substrate. The nickel alloy film includes Mo in a range of 0.5 wt % to 3 wt %, P in a range of 11 wt % to 15 wt %, and Al in a range of 0.001 wt % to 0.1 wt %.

A base for a magnetic recording medium, includes an aluminum alloy substrate, and a nickel alloy film provided on at least one principal surface of the aluminum alloy substrate. The nickel alloy film includes Mo in a range of 0.5 wt % to 3 wt %, P in a range of 11 wt % to 15 wt %, and Fe in a range of 0.0001 wt % to 0.001 wt %.

A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) disk has a magnetic recording layer (typically a FePt chemically-ordered alloy), a seed-thermal barrier layer (typically MgO) below the recording layer, a heat-sink layer, and an optical-coupling multilayer of alternating plasmonic and non-plasmonic materials between the heat-sink layer and the seed-thermal barrier layer. Unlike a heat sink layer, the multilayer has very low in-plane and out-of-plane thermal conductivity and thus does not function as a heat sink layer. The multilayer's low thermal conductivity allows the multilayer to also function as a thermal barrier. Due to the plasmonic materials in the multilayer it provides excellent optical coupling with the near-field transducer (NFT) of the HAMR disk drive.

A magnetic recording medium according to the present technology includes: a base material; and a magnetic layer, in which the magnetic recording medium has a tape shape that is long in a longitudinal direction and short in a width direction, the magnetic layer includes a data band and a servo band, a data signal being written to the data band, the data band being long in the longitudinal direction, a servo signal being written to the servo data, the servo band being long in the longitudinal direction, the degree of perpendicular orientation of the magnetic layer being 65% or more, a full width at half maximum of an isolated waveform in a reproduced waveform of the servo signal is 195 nm or less, the magnetic layer has a thickness of 90 nm or less, and the base material has a thickness of 4.2 μm or less.

The magnetic recording medium includes a non-magnetic support; and a magnetic layer including a ferromagnetic powder, in which the ferromagnetic powder is an ε-iron oxide powder having an average particle size of 5.0 nm to 16.0 nm, a coercivity Hc in a vertical direction is 1,884 Oe to 3,141 Oe, a ten-point average roughness Rz of a surface of the magnetic layer is 35.0 nm to 45.0 nm, and a ratio Rp/Rz of a maximum peak height Rp of the surface of the magnetic layer to the Rz is 0.25 to 1.00.

In one general approach, a product includes an underlayer of a magnetic recording medium. The underlayer has encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by an aromatic polymer, and a polymeric binder binding the encapsulated nanoparticles. A magnetic recording layer is formed above the underlayer. In another general approach, a product includes an electrically conductive underlayer of a magnetic recording medium. The underlayer has encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by an aromatic polymer, and a polymeric binder binding the encapsulated nanoparticles. A magnetic recording layer is formed above the underlayer. The magnetic nanoparticles have an average magnetic field strength of less than 200 Oersted (Oe). An average concentration of the encapsulated nanoparticles in the underlayer is at least 35 vol %.

A product, according to one approach, includes a recording layer. The recording layer includes encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by an encapsulating layer. A polymeric binder binds the encapsulated nanoparticles. A product, according to another approach, includes a recording layer. The recording layer includes encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by an encapsulating layer, and a polymeric binder binding the encapsulated nanoparticles. An average diameter of the magnetic nanoparticles is in a range of 2 nanometers to 20 nanometers. An average thickness of the recording layer is less than 0.2 microns.

A tape cartridge, according to one approach, includes a housing, and a magnetic recording tape at least partially stored in the housing. The magnetic recording tape including a recording layer having encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by an encapsulating layer, and a polymeric binder binding the encapsulated nanoparticles. A tape cartridge, according to another approach, includes a housing, and a magnetic recording tape at least partially stored in the housing. The magnetic recording tape include an underlayer having encapsulated nanoparticles each comprising a magnetic nanoparticle encapsulated by an aromatic polymer, and a polymeric binder binding the encapsulated nanoparticles.