Abstract
The effectiveness of Langmuir-Blodgett films in protecting the metal film layer of magnetic recording media was evaluated. Surface treatment of the metal film with several monolayers of fatty acid salts provides significant protection against abrasion. Treatment with one monolayer of the barium salt of a fatty acid (C 16–22) lowers the coefficient of kinetic friction to less than 0.2 from approximately 0.8 for the untreated film. Additional layers do not lower the coefficient much further, but it is clearly lower for an odd number than for an even number of layers, corresponding to the cases in which the hydrophobic and hydrophilic ends respectively of the fatty acid molecules are exposed at the surface. This can be understood by considering the work of adhesion, calculated from contact angle measurements, which is smaller for odd numbers of layers.
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