Seagate Technology Incorporated

David James Ellison

Timothy William Stoebe

James Dillon Kiely

Ajaykumar Rajasekharan

Edwin F Rejda

Michael Allen Seigler

Gary Joseph Kunkel

Byung Seok Kwon

Peng Zhang

Vincent Engelkes

Michael C Kautzky

Michael Thomas Johnson

Narayanan Ramakrishnan

Jorge Vicente Hanchi

Neil Zuckerman

Joseph Michael Stephan

Peter John Gunderson

Daniel W Olson

Daniel Richard Buettner

Qian Guo

Robert Anthony Fernandez

Vince B Engelkes

A method involves forming a recording head that comprises a waveguide, a write pole, and a near-field transducer proximate the write pole. The near-field transducer has an extended portion extending towards a surface of the recording head and operable to direct plasmons to a recording medium. The surface of the recording head is lapped to form a lapped surface. A resist or hardmask is patterned on the lapped surface in a region that encompasses the extended portion. The lapped surface is etched with the resist or hardmask pattern to form a media-facing surface such that the extended portion protrudes beyond the media-facing surface by a first distance, and the resist or hardmask is removed.

Method for forming a HAMR recording head with a protruding near-field transducer

The present disclosure relates to a recording head that includes a write pole extending to a media-facing surface of the recording head; a near-field transducer extending to a media-facing surface of the recording head; a trailing return pole positioned between the write pole and the trailing edge; and a recessed portion that is recessed relative to the media-facing surface by a distance when no power is applied to the recording head. The trailing return pole is located in the recessed portion. The present disclosure also includes relates methods of making and detecting contact between a recording head and recording medium.

Heat-assisted magnetic recording head, and related methods

A recording head has a waveguide that delivers optical energy from an energy source and a write pole extending to a media-facing surface of the recording head. The recording head also has a near-field transducer coupled to receive the optical energy from the waveguide and emit surface plasmons from the media-facing surface towards a recording medium while the write pole applies a magnetic field to the recording medium. The near-field transducer has an extended portion that, as-manufactured, protrudes beyond the media-facing surface by a first distance.

Heat-assisted magnetic recording head with a near-field transducer extending beyond the media-facing surface

A slider is provided with a conformal coating (e.g., an oxide) on the air-bearing surface (ABS) to provide a consistent surface energy to the ABS. The conformal coating may be formed by an atomic layer deposition (ALD) process. A consistent surface energy inhibits accumulation of contaminants on the slider ABS, such as at topographical transition areas.

Coated slider to inhibit contamination accumulation

Methods for forming a slider for a disc drive. One method includes forming a plurality of sliders on a wafer, applying a self-assembled monolayer coating on the plurality of sliders, and cutting the plurality of sliders into a plurality of individual sliders. Another method includes forming a plurality of sliders on a wafer, applying a low surface energy coating on the plurality of sliders, and cutting the plurality of sliders into a plurality of individual sliders.

Process to inhibit slider contamination during processing

A cleaning head and methods for removing contaminants from a data storage media, the cleaning head having a cleaning surface comprising a self-assembled monolayer, with the cleaning surface leading a read/write transducer. The self-assembled monolayer is selected to have a terminal functional group that has a high affinity to the contaminant(s) desired to be attracted and/or removed.

Contamination reduction head for media

A slider that includes a leading edge surface; a trailing edge surface; and an air bearing surface (ABS) positioned between the leading edge surface and the trailing edge surface, wherein the trailing edge surface includes a read-write element, at least one low surface energy region and at least one high surface energy region.

Sliders having at least two regions on the trailing edge surface

Example embodiments include an apparatus that has a piezoelectric contact sensor. The piezoelectric contact sensor includes a semiconductor device having a semiconductor material that defines a channel through which current can flow. The piezoelectric contact sensor also includes a piezoelectric element coupled to the semiconductor material. The semiconductor material is configured to modulate the current channel in response to compressive stress waves at the contact sensor. Other example embodiments include an apparatus that has a slider having an air-bearing surface, a write head integral to the slider, and a piezoelectric contact sensor that includes a semiconductor device and a piezoelectric element.

Recording head with piezoelectric contact sensor

Methods for providing a SAM (self-assembled monolayer) coating on a slider and subsequently removing a portion of the SAM coating. In one implementation, the method includes applying a SAM coating on at least a first surface of a slider and on a second surface of the slider opposite the first surface, and removing at least a portion of the SAM coating from the second surface by irradiating the second surface with UV radiation in a wavelength range of 100-200 nm.

Method of patterning self-assembled monolayer on slider

A recirculation filter element for a disc drive enclosure. The filter element has a body having a surface area to volume ratio of at least 100/m and a self-assembled monolayer. The self-assembled monolayer may adsorb volatile contaminants from the enclosure or may have a chemical affinity to particulates, to accumulate and sequester particles on the body.

Filter element for disc drive enclosure

A slider, such as for a data storage system, the slider having a leading edge, a trailing edge, an air-bearing surface, and a transducer proximate the trailing edge. The slider has a low surface energy coating on the air-bearing surface and a high surface energy coating on the transducer. In some embodiments, the high surface energy coating is present on a contact sensor.

Slider with high and low surface energy coatings proximate transducer

A cleaning head for removing contaminants from a data storage media, the cleaning head having a cleaning surface comprising a self-assembled monolayer, with the cleaning surface leading a read/write transducer. The self-assembled monolayer is selected so as to have a terminal functional group that has a high affinity to the contaminant(s) desired to be attracted and/or removed.

A slider, having a leading edge, a trailing edge, a working surface, and read/write heads proximate the trailing edge. The slider includes a protective overcoat over the working surface of the slider, and a self-assembled monolayer coating on the working surface of the slider and over the protective overcoat, the coating comprising at least one self-assembled monolayer material.

Slider with self-assembled monolayer pattern

A magnetic data storage drive that includes a self-assembled monolayer having a magnetic function. The drive comprises a magnetic data storage medium having a magnetic surface, a slider having a working surface, the slider positioned and configured to detect magnetic fields from the magnetic surface of the medium, and a self-assembled monolayer between the magnetic surface and the working surface, the self-assembled monolayer having a magnetic function to reduce dispersion of magnetic fields from the magnetic surface of the medium to the working surface of the slider.

Growing community of inventors

Minneapolis, MN, United States of America

David James Ellison