Recording method for optical disk and optical disk recording reproduction device

A recording and reproducing device for recording information in an optical disk having a recording layer and an optically transparent layer through which a recording laser beam or reproducing laser beam applied to the recording layer is transmitted, the device comprising:

• an optical pickup unit including a laser diode for emitting the recording laser beam or the reproducing laser beam, an objective lens for focusing a laser beam from the laser diode onto the optical disk, aberration correcting means that is provided between the laser diode and the objective lens and that corrects spherical aberration occurring in the recording laser beam or the reproducing laser beam, and a photo detector for detecting reflective light from the optical disk as a reproduction signal;
• a signal intensity detector for reading the reproduction signal from the optical pickup unit to detect the intensity of the reproduction signal;
• a characteristic value detector for reading the reproduction signal from the optical pickup unit to detect a characteristic value used for estimation of recording quality;
• a spot diameter detector for detecting the spot diameter of the laser beam on the basis of a signal from the signal intensity detector;
• aberration detecting means for detecting spherical aberration occurring in the recording laser beam or the reproducing laser beam;
• and
• an aberration controller for driving the aberration correcting means of the optical pickup unit to correct the spherical aberration on the basis of a detection result of the aberration detecting means during recording of a record region of the optical disk, the aberration controller driving the aberration correcting means within a permissible range within which the characteristic value is acceptable, the permissible range been determined by executing a test record on an output proofing area of the optical disk while a spot diameter of the recording laser beam is varied and by deriving a relationship between the spot diameter of the recording laser beam and the characteristic value of data recorded in the test record, and
• wherein if, in order to correct the spherical aberration, the aberration correcting means needs to be driven outside of the permissible range, the aberration correction is not executed, so that the aberration correcting means is driven within the permissible range when the aberration correction is executed.