UK Information Storage Organisations

Aston University - Surface Science Group

School of Engineering & Applied Science, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET

Prof John Sullivan  0121 359 3611 x5255   0121 359 0156

The Surface Science Group's current research programme, which is supported by both national and international grants, is predominantly focused on projects concerned with the electronic properties of surfaces and interfaces. SEM, AFM, MFM, optical microscopy, optical spectroscopy, plasma cells and mass/energy, Langmuir and optical plasma diagnostic probes are available within the group.

In the LINK ISD Programme, the Group can offer contributions in the tribology of magnetic recording tape & hard disk drives as well as in near field optical recording. As the leading group in Europe in this subject area and probably the only one in the world that makes so much use of modern surface analytical techniques in the investigations, Aston's proposed contribution is to gain a fundamental understanding of the tribology of magnetic recording heads (in hard drives and tape) developed by other partners, to relate this to ultimate signal performance and, through this understanding, to be able to specify the material and mechanical parameters necessary to produce minimum wear, pole tip recession and transfer film formation - and thus to maximise signal and minimise errors over the lifetime of the head.

The use of new materials and techniques, very small component dimensions and high speeds will mean that a whole new range of tribological problems will need to be addressed. The work will also have implications for other nano-tribological applications. The same methodology can be applied to any recording system in which contact or intermittent contact occurs between the medium and the read/write sensors, such as near field optical recording.

Aston University - Electronics Engineering Group

School of Engineering & Applied Science, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET

Dr Xiaohong Peng  0121 359 3611 x4937   0121 359 0156

The Electronics Engineering Group has established a research programme on fault-tolerant data storage for distributed mobile networks, supported by well developed research groups in surface science and photonics. It investigates storage-related problems within a distributed network using advanced signal processing, coding and networking technologies. Such problems include unpredictable data access modes, limited computation and communication resources and dynamic network structure.

University of Bath

Department of Physics, Bath, BA2 7AY

Prof W.N. Wang  01225-383776   01225-383326

The interests of the Wide Band Gap Semiconductors Group include technology for fabricating various optoelectronic devices such as novel light emitting devices for data storage.

Queen's University of Belfast

Department of Pure and Applied Physics, Belfast, BT7 1NN

Prof Ron Atkinson  028 90 273546   028 90 236226

The particular interests of the thin film magnetics group lie in the optical, magnetic and magneto-optical properties of thin films and multilayer systems. Such systems include conventional, thick, multilayered systems and systems fabricated from ultra-thin layers that have unusual magnetic and optical properties. Deposition techniques include rf/dc sputtering and pulsed laser deposition of magnetic oxides of complex stoichiometry.

University of Birmingham

Institute of Metallurgy and Materials, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT

Professor I. Rex Harris  0121 414 3659   0121 414 5247

The Applied Alloy Chemistry Group (AACG) has been at the forefront of bulk magnetic material development for the past 20 years. These materials are ultimately used in the drive mechanisms of voice coil actuators in disk and tape applications. There are a growing number of further applications where the Group has been involved in producing prototype rare earth permanent magnet components.

University of Bristol

H.H. Wills Physics Laboratory, Dept of Physics, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TL

Dr Walther Schwarzacher  0117 9288709   0117 9255624

The Physics Laboratory has a magnetic materials research team which is primarily involved in the electrodeposition of nanostructured magnetic materials, but has a general interest in precision electrodeposition (e.g. of thin film heads).

University of Cambridge - Amorphous Materials Group

Department of Chemistry, Lensfield Road, Cambridge CB2 1EW

Prof Stephen Elliott  01223 336525   01223 336362

Part of the group's work centres around a class of chalcogenide glasses containing discrete, quasi-spherical molecular species that may be suitable materials for high-density, rewriteable holographic data-storage media. Present research on this topic is concerned with material characterisation and a study of hologram formation and its optimisation.

University of Cambridge - Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy

Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ

Prof Jan Evetts  01223 334300   01223 334567

The group embraces world-leading research on materials for various types of microelectronic device, functional oxides for memory and power conduction and the science of thin film deposition. Instorage, interests include Giant magnetoresistance in metallic multilayers, spin polarised tunnelling and colossal magnetoresistive materials and devices.

University of Cambridge - Electronic Devices and Materials Group

Engineering Department, Trumpington Street, Cambridge CB2 1PZ

Prof John Robertson  01223 332689   01223 332662

The group's involvement in storage centres around its expertise in Diamond-Like Carbon coatings for heads and media.

University of Cardiff

Department of Chemistry, PO Box 912, Cardiff CF10 3TB

Prof Harry Heller  029 2087 5856   029 2087 4030

Part of the department's research activities are concerned with the design and molecular tailoring of fatigue-resistant photochromic organic compounds - in particular, the modification of the properties of photochromic compounds to make them suitable for application in optical recording and computer information storage systems (amongst other things).

University of Central Lancashire

Centre for Materials Science, Preston, PR1 2HE

Prof Phil Bissell  01772 893540   01772 892996

The Magnetic Materials Research Group has a strong tradition of experimental measurements and micromagnetic modelling with linking themes, particularly interaction effects and magnetisation reversal in recording media.

Coventry University

Centre for Data Storage Materials, School of Science and the Environment, Coventry, CV1 5FB

Dr Dave Newman  024 76888285   024 76838372

The Centre for Data Storage Materials (CDSM) was established in 1992 with a mission to broaden the scientific and engineering knowledge base of the data storage industry through innovative research and education. The Centre, which was founded on the long established Magnetic Materials Research Group, currently supports a number of research programmes concerned with materials of interest to the data storage industry. The main effort is directed at the product and characterisation of new thin film materials for very high density, rapid access digital information storage systems using magnetic and magneto-optic recording. Investigations are centred on the physical, microstructure, optical, magnetic, magnetoresistive and magneto-optical properties of hard and soft magnetic thin films prepared in the Centre.

University of Exeter - Electronic Systems Engineering Group

Department of Engineering, Harrison Building, Exeter EX4 4QF

Prof David Wright  01392 263614   01392 879453

The Electronic Systems Engineering Group's primary research interests in data storage systems involve CD's, DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, computer hard disk systems, scanning microscopy, AFM, STM andMFM. Achievements include the development of a complete theoretical treatment for the entire optical data storage write-read-recovery channel and its application to the development of new, ultra-high density storage techniques, looking particularly at ways to overcome the classical optical diffraction limit. This theoretical model, in computational form, is now in used by many of the major optical disk manufacturers in Europe, including Philips, MPO and Plasmon Data Systems.

University of Exeter - Magnetic Materials Group

School of Physics, Stocker Road, Exeter EX4 4QL

Dr Robert Hicken  01392 264153   01392 26411

The research of the Magnetic Materials Group has three principal themes: magnetic processes that occur on femtosecond through to nanosecond timescales; fabrication and characterisation of magnetic tunnel junctions; fabrication and characterisation of patterned magnetic media. We fabricate thin film samples by magnetron sputtering and electrodeposition, and have facilities for magnetometry, magnetotransport, and magneto-optical measurements.

We have particular expertise in the use of optical pump-probe spectroscopy for the study of high speed magnetisation dynamics. This is relevant to fast switching in recording heads and Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM) devices, to spin relaxation in spin electronic devices, and to the read and write processes in magneto-optical recording. Two main areas of research could be applied to LINK ISD projects:

1. Ultrafast Magneto-Optics: we are able to observe the response of microscopic magnetic elements to pulsed magnetic fields with sub-micron spatial resolution and sub-picosecond temporal resolution. We can acquire time resolved images or follow the time dependent response at a particular point in the sample, and are currently working on a method to further improve the spatial resolution using a near field optical technique. Our technique is most useful for probing flux dynamics in write heads or the response of the sense layer in a magnetoresistive sensor. There are only a few groups in the world, and no others in the UK, that are capable of making these measurements. We can also use laser pulses to stimulate magnetic films, as in the thermomagnetic MO recording process. We can then observe the demagnetisation with femtosecond resolution. This may be of interest to makers of MO media. We believe that there is a lot of interest in exploiting the near field and we would like to become involved in this as well.

2. Magnetic tunnel junctions: we are fabricating double barrier junctions that exhibit very large magnetocurrents - however, we have the facilities and expertise to make other types of structure. Applications lie in sensors and MRAM.

University of Glasgow

Department of Physics and Astronomy, Solid State Physics Group, Glasgow, G12 8QQ

Prof John Chapman  0141 330 4462   0141 330 4464

The primary involvement of the group concerns micromagnetic and microstructural imaging of magnetic multilayer films and elements of interest for sensing or storage applications. The overall aim is to understand how functional properties arise and to seek ways in which improvements can be effected. The group makes extensive use of electron microscopy and related analytical techniques, most notably electron energy loss spectroscopy to achieve characterisation with very high spatial resolution. An instrument newly installed in 2002 is used to perform chemical analyses using an electron probe <0.3 nm in diameter. With a different instrument, optimised for magnetic imaging, magnetisation distributions are investigated with a probe <10 nm in diameter, vital when studying elements with widths of 100 nm or less. The group also has a focused ion beam machine, installed in 2001, which is used as a further means for modifying the properties of multilayer films. The group collaborates extensively with industry and academia and welcomes further interactions.

University of Leeds

Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, E.C.Stoner Laboratory, Leeds LS2 9JT

Prof Bryan Hickey  0113 343 3836  0113 343 3846

The Condensed Matter Group at the University of Leeds has an active and wide ranging programme on magnetic thin films and nanostructures. Major research themes relevant to data storage include the development of spintronic and magnetoresistive materials and devices suitable for next generation heads (GMR, TMr and beyond), studies of exchange bias useful for biasing read heads and stabilising advanced media, self-assembly of magnetic nanostructures over large areas and developing magnetic
scattering techniques that can relate physical and magnetic microstructure and non-destructively determine micromagnetic disorder at buried layers and interfaces.

Experimental facilities include world class MBE and sputtering film deposition systems, numerous magnetotransport facilities and various structural (x-ray, RHEED, STM, AFM) and magnetic (MOKE, VSM, MFM) characterisation tools.

University of Liverpool

Department of Chemistry, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZD

Prof Matthew Rosseinsky  0151 794 3499   0151 794 3587

Research interests of the solid state and materials chemistry group include the synthesis of new inorganic solids and the characterisation of their structures and physical and chemical behaviour. The areas covered range from the synthesis of new solids of fundamental academic interest to in-situ characterisation of the synthesis and reactivity of industrially relevant materials. In particular, the work on colossal magnetoresistance in manganese and other transition metal oxides is important in magnetic information storage and magnetic field sensing.

University College London

Optical Systems and Devices Research Group, Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, Torrington Place, London WC1E 7JE

David R. Selviah  020 7679 3056   020 7388 9325

The Group's research is concerned with all aspects of optical devices, subsystems and systems including reseach into holographic storage, neural network content addressable memories, optical correlators, high bit rate optical fibre interconnects, optical backplanes, liquid crystal phase modulating devices and variable focal length microlenses.

University of Manchester - Electronic and Information Storage Systems Research Group

Department of Computer Science, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL

Prof Barry Middleton  0161 275 4551   0161 275 4527

The Group is the largest research group of its kind in the UK and consists of five permanent academic staff working together on data storage systems, instrumentation and sensors. Active interests of the group include magneto-optic, optical and magnetic data storage, scanning microscopy, micro-sensor development and thin film fabrication and lithography.

University of Manchester - Laser Photonics Research Group

Department of Physics & Astronomy, Schuster Lab, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL

Dr Dave West  0161 275 4103   0161 275 4293

The Group has a decade of experience of development of photorefractive polymers as materials for holographic or bit-oriented optical storage. The materials are recordable, readable, erasable and reusable optically. They are particularly well-suited to integration within future ultrahigh density holographic optical storage archives.

University of Nottingham

Instrumentation, Sensors and Systems Group, School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD

Prof Michael Somekh  0115 951 5600   0115 951 5616

The Optical Engineering Group develops novel optical techniques for surface characterisation and materials assessment. The main research areas are Microscopy, Laser Ultrasonics and Optical Scattering.

Nottingham Trent University

Clifton Lane, Nottingham NG11 8NS

Dr Avtar Matharu  0115-8483-536   0115-8486-636

Research interests in the Department of Chemistry and Physics include the synthesis of novel materials (both mesogenic and non-mesogenic) for electro-optical and holographic memory applications. There are also projects involving the synthesis and characterisation of novel chiral and achiral heterocyclic-based esters for liquid crystal electro-optic applications, and the development of terabyte capacity data storage media for holgraphic and digital read/write memory devices.

University of Oxford - Department of Chemistry

Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QR

Dr Peter Battle  01865 272 612   01865 272 690

The Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory attempts to correlate crystal structure with electronic behaviour, particular emphasis being placed on the link between structure and magnetic properties. This includes work on colossal magnetoresistance in certain oxides of manganese.

University of Oxford - Department of Materials

Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PH

Dr Amanda Petford-Long  01865 273656   01865 273789

The Magnetic Materials Group is concentrating on understanding the role of microstructure, composition and magnetic domain structure on the magnetic and transport properties of materials with applications in the information storage industry.

University of Plymouth

Centre for Research in Information Storage Technology, School of E.C.E.E., Drake Circus, Plymouth, Devon PL4 8AA

Prof Des Mapps  01752 232570   01752 232583

The Centre for Research in Information Storage Technology at Plymouth is one of the largest in the UK, with industry-standard clean-rooms for research on information storage devices. Particular expertise includes the design and development of recording head structures, the characterisation and application of magneto-optic materials, and the development of MRAM devices.

Research in data storage systems concentrates in several areas with PhD and post-doctoral programmes concerning magnetoresistive and thin-film recording heads, thin-film magnetic media, servo systems for computer disk drives, environmental testing of data storage systems, credit-card systems, partial-response maximum likelihood signal processing, Viterbi detection, magneto-optic systems, laser-based Kerr-effect measurement systems and solid state spin-tunnelling random-access memory cells. The research is currently supervised by two professors and five other senior academic staff, with two support technicians.

Robert Gordon University

Faculty of Science and Technology, Department of Computer and Mathematical Sciences, St. Andrew Street, Aberdeen AB25 1HG

Prof David Harper  01224 26 2706   01224 26 2727

The information retrieval research group is developing tools and techniques for efficient and effective retrieval of multimedia information. The group is designing and implementing object-oriented frameworks, which integrate the functionality of information retrieval (IR) systems, database systems and hypermedia systems, and which will form the basis for a broad variety of IR applications. The frameworks are implemented using a state-of-the-art distributed object data management system. Particular interests include: multimedia image/text retrieval; advanced text indexing and retrieval methods; the design and implementation of useful and usable tools for the end-users of IR applications.

University of Salford

Dept of Pure and Applied Physics, Salford, M5 4WT

Prof Phil Grundy  0161 295 5404   0161 295 5197

The primary involvement in the information storage industry is the investigation of potential thin film media for disk coatings - involving deposition and crystallographic and magnetic characterisation - as well as the development of high magnetisation materials for write heads, involving novel deposition techniques.

University of Sheffield

Hicks Building, Hounsfield Road, Sheffield, S3 7RH

Prof Mike Gibbs  0114 2224278   0114 2728079

The Functional Magnetic Materials group at the University of Sheffield has the capability to study magnetoelastic properties of ultrathin films used in data storage. Current projects include NiFe and CoFe films used in heads, and epitaxial Fe and Co films used in spintronics. The aim is always to understand, and thereby control, the magnetoelastic anisotropy which develops in ultrathin films.

University of Southampton Optoelectronics Research Centre

Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ

Dr Dan Hewak  023 8059 3164   023 8059 3142

The ORC grew out of the thirty-year history of ground breaking laser and fibre optics research at the University of Southampton. Our activities are grouped around one of the largest cleanroom complexes in Europe dedicated to the production of optical fibres and planar waveguides. Our staff, now numbering over 150, makes up the largest university based research group entirely devoted to optoelectronics in the EU.

University of Ulster at Jordanstown

Thin Film Devices Group, NIBEC Building, Jordanstown, Newtownabbey, Co Antrim BT37 0QB

Dr James McLaughlin  028 9036 8933   028 9036 6863

Established in 1990 from initial research into flat panel display technologies, the group has developed both expertise and facilities for research into generic thin film technology and its applications.

University of York

Department of Physics, Magnetic Materials Research Group, Heslington, York YO10 5DD

Prof Kevin O'Grady  01904 432289   01904 432214

The Magnetic Materials Group specialises in the growth, structural and magnetic characterisation of magnetic thin films and multilayers, particulate and thin film recording media, exchange-biased films for recording heads and magnetoelectronics.