{
  "status": "shipping",
  "advantages": [],
  "limitations": [],
  "supersedes": [],
  "supersededBy": [],
  "firstSeen": null,
  "lastSeen": null,
  "updated": "2026-10-16",
  "slug": "near-field-transducer",
  "term": "Near-field transducer (NFT)",
  "aliases": [
    "NFT",
    "Plasmonic near-field transducer"
  ],
  "definition": "A near-field transducer is a nanoscale optical structure that couples supplied light into a confined near field, used in HAMR to heat the recording medium.",
  "note": "Do not identify the NFT with the laser or magnetic pole. A prototype-head study combined cathodoluminescence and scattering near-field microscopy; the antenna resonance shifted without the recording medium [optical-transfer-2018]. Its optical response depends on the measurement environment, not just the isolated antenna geometry. Seagate describes the laser, waveguide and plasmonic antenna in its Mozaic writer [seagate-gen2-writer]; the shipping status refers to that deployed architecture, whose production is separately reported [seagate-mozaic4-2026], not to every experimental NFT design.",
  "related": [
    "hamr",
    "thermal-writability"
  ],
  "citations": [
    {
      "id": "optical-transfer-2018",
      "title": "Visualizing the bidirectional optical transfer function for near-field enhancement in waveguide coupled plasmonic transducers, Scientific Reports (2018), doi:10.1038/s41598-018-24061-3; Figures 2-3 and Methods",
      "url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-24061-3",
      "accessed": "2026-10-16"
    },
    {
      "id": "seagate-gen2-writer",
      "title": "Seagate: Gen 2 plasmonic writer; laser, photonic funnel and quantum antenna (vendor technical description)",
      "url": "https://www.seagate.com/innovation/mozaic/gen-2-plasmonic-writer/",
      "accessed": "2026-10-16"
    },
    {
      "id": "seagate-mozaic4-2026",
      "title": "Seagate: Mozaic 4+ qualification and production announcement, 3 March 2026 (vendor claim)",
      "url": "https://www.seagate.com/stories/articles/seagate-delivers-industrys-highest-capacity-hard-drives-with-next-generation-mozaic-4/",
      "accessed": "2026-10-16"
    }
  ]
}