Recording liquid

Claim 1

A recording liquid comprising a solution of a recording agent having a molecular structure containing a plural number of structure units linked together through a linking group or groups, said structural units being selected from the group of the dye residues represented by the formulae: wherein Q₁ and Q₂ each represent a benzene ring or a naphthalene ring which may have a substituent, R₁ represents a hydrogen atom or an amino group, R₂ represents a hydrogen atom or a sulfonic group and k represents a numeral 0 or 1, wherein Q₃ and Q₄ each represent a benzene ring or a naphthalene ring which may have a substituent, R₃ represents a hydrogen atom or a sulfonic group, R₄ and R₅ each represent a group selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen each represent a hydrogen atom, an amino group, a monoethanol amino group, an acylamino group, an alkyl group, a sulfonic group), (R₈ and R₉ each represent a hydroxyl group, an amino group, a monoethanol-­amino group or a diethanol amino group), ℓ represents a numeral 0 or 1, wherein Q₅ and Q₆ each represent a benzene ring or a naphthalene ring which may have a substituent, R₁₀ represents a hydrogen atom or a sulfonic group, Mʹ represents a divalent or higher valent metal atom, m represents a numeral 0 or 1, and wherein Q₇ and Q₈ represents a benzene ring or a naphthalene ring which may have a substituent, R₁₁ represents a hydrogen atom or a sulfonic group, R₁₂ represents a numeral 0 or 1; said linking group includes the groups represented by the formulae: (Y): -(CH₂)q-, -NHCONH-, -NHCO-, -O-, -SO₂-, -NHCO(CH₂) r CONH-, -NH- (wherein q and r are integers of 1-6) (Z): -NHCONH-, -NH-, -CH=CH-, -N=N-, -COO9CH₂)₂OCO- and the sulfonic group and carboxylic group in said structural units forming a salt with a base selected from alkali metals, ammonia, and organic amines.