In magnetic recording, the metallic magnetic media are protected from corrosion and wear by a thin sputtered carbon layer. The latter also acts as a self-lubricating film during the interaction of the media with the ceramic read \write head pad material. Since the surface energy of carbon is high, it tends to absorb and chemisorb environmental constituents such as oxygen, nitrogen, water vapor and hydrocarbons. These could then react with the head\media interface and form heterogeneous layers of “frictional polymers”. These changes in carbon lead to frictional instability and friction build-up. Low temperature gas plasma treatment of sputtered carbon layer was found to improve the surface properties and the frictional instability problems. Use of a mixture of argon and carbon tetrafluoride gases led to the formation of a very thin self-lubricating layer, probably a fluorocarbon. The surface also becomes smooth. This is because of thecombined reaction of chemical reaction, ion-diffusion, ion-penetration and plasma etching. This reaction product was found to be prominently present at the grain boundaries and other morphological inhomogeneities, thereby strengthening the weak areas and improving the tribo-performance of the media.