The objective of this paper is to describe in general terms the physics surrounding the formation of an optical hole in a recording medium which is in intimate contact with an overcoat. The major thrust of this work involves the estimation of the thermal situation at the time of hole formation by the calculation of the temperature profile on the medium surface. Specific estimates of the activation temperature will be compared to experimental data gathered on read/write test equipment. Additionally, the optical properties of the resulting pit will be explored using calculations to estimate the pit reflectivity. The optical calculations are supported by experimental data from a read/write device. Transmission electron microscopy has been used to study the morphology of written holes and to elucidate the hole formation mechanism.

Date Published: 1 January 1983
PDF: 33 pages
Proc. SPIE 0382, Optical Data Storage, (1 January 1983); doi: 10.1117/12.970192

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 0382:
Optical Data Storage
Di Chen, Editor(s)