Optical recording film, method for manufacturing the same, optical recording medium, information recording/reproducing device, computer system and video signal recording/reproducing system

A method for manufacturing an optical recording film, comprising:

• providing a substrate including active hydrogen at its surface;
• providing a chemisorptive solution, by mixing in a non-aqueous organic solvent chemisorptive molecules having at one end a reactive group that chemically bonds with the active hydrogen at the surface of the substrate, and having the property that, when irradiated with polarized light for molecule orientation, a long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules is changed into a specific direction depending on a polarization direction of the polarized light;
• and
• forming the optical recording film in form of a monomolecular layer chemically bonded to the surface of the substrate by bringing the chemisorptive solution and the substrate into contact and causing a low molecular elimination reaction between the active hydrogen in the substrate surface and the reactive groups of the chemisorptive molecules.

An information recording/reproducing device for recording and reproducing information on an optical recording medium that includes an optical recording film in form of a monomolecular layer comprising chemisorptive molecules that are chemically bonded by covalent bonding to a surface of a medium substrate, wherein when irradiated with polarized light, a long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules is changed to a direction in which the polarized light is irradiated, the information recording/reproducing device comprising:

• a signal input/output portion for input and output, with respect to an external device, of operation instruction signals and information signals resulting from converting information into electrical signals;
• a recording light emission portion for emitting recording light that writes information elements by controlling the long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules constituting the recording layer, in accordance with the information signals from the signal input/output portion;
• a reference light emission portion for emitting reference light that does not change the long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules constituting the recording layer;
• an information element detecting portion that, upon irradiation of reference light onto the recording layer, detects differences in an intensity or differences in an intensity distribution of polarized light components of the reference light that has passed through the recording layer, those differences being caused by differences between the information elements, and outputs a predetermined electrical signal in accordance with a result of this detection to the signal input/output portion;
• a position control driving portion for selectively irradiating the recording light and the reference light onto predetermined positions of the optical recording medium;
• and
• a control circuit portion for controlling the recording operation by coordinating the recording light emission portion and the position control driving portion, and controlling the reproduction operation by coordinating the reference light emission portion, the position control driving portion and the information element detecting portion.

A computer system, comprising:

• an arithmetic processing device including a main memory;
• an auxiliary storage device;
• an input device;
• an output device;
• and
• a communication control device for controlling communication between those devices;
• wherein, upon a recording instruction from the input device, input information from the input device is sent via the arithmetic processing device to the auxiliary storage device as recording information signals resulting from converting input information into electrical signals, and the sent recording information signals are recorded on the auxiliary storage device;
• wherein, upon a reproduction instruction from the input device, the information recorded in the auxiliary storage device is read out as reproduction information signals from the auxiliary storage device, sent via the arithmetic processing device to the output device, and a reproduction based on the sent reproduction information signals is carried out with the output device;
• wherein the auxiliary storage device is a device for recording and reproducing information on an optical recording medium that includes an optical recording film in form of a monomolecular layer comprising chemisorptive molecules that are chemically bonded by covalent bonding to a surface of a medium substrate, wherein, when the optical recording film is irradiated with polarized light, a long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules is changed to a direction in which the polarized light is irradiated;
• wherein the auxiliary storage device comprises:
• an information storage portion comprising said optical recording medium;
• a signal input/output portion for input and output, with respect to an external device, of operation instruction signals and information signals resulting from converting information into electrical signals;
• a recording light emission portion for emitting recording light that writes information elements by controlling the long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules constituting the recording layer, in accordance with the information signals from the signal input/output portion;
• a reference light emission portion for emitting reference light that does not change the long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules constituting the recording layer;
• an information element detecting portion that, upon irradiation of reference light onto the recording layer, detects differences in an intensity or differences in an intensity distribution of polarized light components of the reference light that has passed through the recording layer, those differences being caused by differences between the information elements, and outputs a predetermined electrical signal in accordance with a result of this detection to the signal input/output portion;
• a position control driving portion for selectively irradiating the recording light and the reference light onto predetermined positions of the optical recording medium;
• and
• a control circuit portion for controlling the recording operation by coordinating the recording light emission portion and the position control driving portion, and controlling the reproduction operation by coordinating the reference light emission portion, the position control driving portion and the information element detecting portion.

A video recording/reproducing system, comprising:

• a video signal input/output control device for controlling input/output of video signals;
• a video storage device;
• a video output device;
• and
• a control instruction input device for sending input/output control instructions to the video signal input/output control device;
• wherein, upon a recording instruction from the control instruction input device, a video signal from an external video signal sender is sent via the video signal input/output control device to the video storage device, and video information is recorded on the video storage device based on the sent video signals;
• wherein, upon a reproduction instruction from the control instruction input device, the video information recorded in the video storage device is read out as reproduction video signals, sent via the video signal input/output control device to the video output device, and a reproduction based on the sent reproduction video signals is carried out with the video output device;
• wherein the video storage device is an information recording/reproducing device for recording and reproducing video information on an optical recording medium that includes an optical recording film in form of a monomolecular layer comprising chemisorptive molecules that are chemically bonded by covalent bonding to a surface of a medium substrate, wherein, when the optical recording film is irradiated with polarized light, a long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules is changed to a direction in which the polarized light is irradiated;
• wherein the video storage device comprises:
• a video information storage portion comprising said optical recording medium;
• a signal input/output portion for input and output, with respect to an external device, of operation instruction signals and electrical signals resulting from converting video information into electrical signals;
• a recording light emission portion for emitting recording light that writes information elements by controlling the long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules constituting the recording layer, in accordance with the information signals from the signal input/output portion;
• a reference light emission portion for emitting reference light that does not change the long axis orientation of the chemisorptive molecules constituting the recording layer;
• an information element detecting portion that, upon irradiation of reference light onto the recording layer, detects differences in an intensity or differences in an intensity distribution of polarized light components of the reference light that has passed through the recording layer, those differences being caused by differences between the information elements, and outputs a predetermined electrical signal in accordance with a result of this detection to the signal input/output portion;
• a position control driving portion for selectively irradiating the recording light and the reference light onto predetermined positions of the optical recording medium;
• and
• a control circuit portion for controlling the recording operation by coordinating the recording light emission portion and the position control driving portion, and controlling the reproduction operation by coordinating the reference light emission portion, the position control driving portion and the information element detecting portion.