Thermal transfer material and thermal transfer recording method

Claim 1

A thermal transfer recording method, comprising: providing a thermal transfer material further comprising a support and a heat-transferable ink layer disposed thereon, wherein the heat-transferable ink layer, as a whole has a storage elasticity modulus E' satisfying a relationship of: 1×10.sup.7 ≦E'≦1×10.sup.9 N/m.sup.2 at 30° C., and has a temperature providing a thermal differential value of dynamic energy loss angle (tan δ) satisfying a relationship of d(tan δ)/dT=1×10 -2 in the range of 40° to 60° C., and said heat-transferable ink layer comprises a heat-fusible binder which in turn contains 20-75% of a wax and 25-80% of a heat-fusible resin; causing the thermal transfer material to contact a recording medium with its ink layer side; supplying a pattern of energy from a recording head to the thermal transfer material; and separating the thermal transfer material from the recording medium to leave a transferred image on the recording medium; wherein the thermal transfer material moves in a unit period of time by a first distance relative to the recording head which is smaller than a second distance relative to the recording head through which the recording medium moves in the same period of time so that a particular region of the thermal transfer material can withstand a desired number of thermal transfer recording operations.