Recording medium and method of making the same

A recording medium with a laminated structure, the medium comprising:

• a substrate;
• a recording layer provided with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for recording of information;
• a first foundation layer located between the substrate and the recording layer, the first foundation layer being made of a material selected from the group consisting of SiN, SiO2, YSiO2, ZnSiO2, AlO and AlN;
• an initial layer which is greater in surface tension than the first foundation layer and held in contact with a recoding-layer-side surface of the foundation layer, the initial layer being made of a material selected from the group consisting of Pt, Au, Pd, Ru, Co and alloys thereof;
• a functional layer held in contact with a recoding-layer-side surface of the initial layer,
• a second foundation layer held in contact with a recoding-layer-side surface of the functional layer, the second foundation layer being made of a material selected from the group consisting of SiN, SiO2, YSiO2, ZnSiO2, AlO and AlN;
• and
• a roughness controlling layer which is greater in surface tension than the second foundation layer and interposed between the second foundation layer and the recording layer, the roughness controlling layer being made of a material selected from the group consisting of Pt, Au, Pd, Ru, Co and alloys thereof;
• wherein the second foundation layer is spaced from the first foundation layer at least by as much as a combined thickness of the initial layer and the functional layer.