Patent ID: 8202635

Claim:
A read only magnetic information carrier comprising: a substrate; an information layer comprising a pattern of magnetic bits of magnetic material, the pattern of magnetic bits constituting an array of bit locations wherein some of the bit locations have magnetic material present and some of the bit locations have an absence of magnetic material and wherein the presence or absence of the magnetic material at a bit location represents a value of the bit location by a magnetic field having a predetermined magnetic field direction, wherein the predetermined magnetic field direction of the magnetic bits is parallel to the surface of the substrate; and a stabilizing layer between the substrate and the information layer, the stabilizing layer comprising hard magnetic material that is magnetically coupled to the magnetic material of the magnetic bits, wherein the magnetization of the stabilizing layer is aligned parallel to the predetermined magnetic field direction of the magnetic bits for providing the predetermined magnetic field direction of the magnetic field; wherein the magnetic coupling prevents the magnetic field direction of the magnetic bits from changing, which secures the predetermined magnetic field direction of the magnetic field of the magnetic bits; wherein the magnetic bits of the information layer are directly adjacent to the stabilizing layer.