Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.v.

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Japan, Ltd.

Hitachi, Ltd.

Hgst Netherlands, B.v.

Hitachi Metals, Ltd.

Kenichi Meguro

Hiroyuki Hoshiya

Katsuro Watanabe

Katsumi Hoshino

Hiroyuki Katada

Nobuo Yoshida

Kazuhiro Nakamoto

Yasunori Abe

Kikuo Kusukawa

Masahiko Hatatani

Yo Sato

Kouichi Nishioka

Chiseki Haginoya

Masato Shiimoto

Hisashi Kimura

Yasuyuki Okada

Taku Shintani

Takashi Wagatsuma

Masashi Hattori

Keizou Katou

Hiroshi Fukui

Moriaki Fuyama

Tomohiro Saito

Yohji Maruyama

Yoshiaki Kawato

Kimitoshi Etoh

Kazue Kudo

Susumu Okamura

Takao Imagawa

Makoto Morijiri

Susumu Soeya

Kaori Suzuki

Yoshihiro Hamakawa

Takeshi Nakagawa

Naoto Ito

Jun Aoyama

Hideki Mashima

Ichiro Oodake

Norihiro Ookawa

Shigeo Fujita

Keizo Kato

Chiaki Ishakawa

Toyoshige Noridomi

You Sato

In one embodiment, a magnetic head includes a lower magnetic shield layer positioned at a media-facing surface, a pinned layer positioned above the lower magnetic shield layer at the media-facing surface, at least two MR elements extending in an element height direction by a first length positioned above the pinned layer and separated in a cross-track direction by an inner layer, bias layers extending in the element height direction by a second length positioned on outside edges of the MR elements and the pinned layer, and current paths positioned above and in electrical communication with the bias layers on either side of the inner layer, each current path extending in the element height direction away from the media-facing surface by a third length.

Multi-sensor reader structure having a current path with increased size to reduce noise

A magnetic sensor includes a plurality of magneto-resistive effect elements each configured by using a magneto-resistive effect film formed by laminating a pinned layer, a nonmagnetic layer, and a free layer in order from a side of a substrate. A first linear pattern is formed in a first portion on the substrate in a first direction. A second linear pattern is formed in a second portion on the substrate in a second direction. A magnetization direction of the first portion is different from a magnetization direction of the second portion. The magneto-resistive effect film is further formed on the substrate. Each of the plurality of magneto-resistive effect elements includes a pair of electrodes formed by the magneto-resistive effect film processed into a predetermined shape.

Method for producing magneto-resistive effect element, magnetic sensor, rotation-angle detection device

According to one embodiment, a magnetic head includes a lower magnetic shield positioned at a media facing surface of the head, a lower sensor positioned above the lower magnetic shield, the lower sensor including a lower free layer, a middle magnetic shield positioned above the lower sensor at the media facing surface of the head, and a back side antiferromagnetic (AFM) layer positioned behind the lower free layer in an element height direction, the back side AFM layer being configured to provide magnetic stabilization for the middle magnetic shield. In another embodiment, a method includes forming a lower sensor including a lower free layer, forming a back side AFM layer behind the lower free layer in an element height direction, and forming a middle magnetic shield above the lower sensor, wherein the back side AFM layer is configured to provide magnetic stabilization for the middle magnetic shield.

Multi-sensor (MIMO) head having a back side antiferromagnetic middle shield

The embodiments disclosed generally relate to a read head sensor in a magnetic recording head. The read head sensor comprises side shields in addition to the upper and lower shields. The upper shield sensor is a multilayer structure with antiferromagnetic coupling. The side shield is a multilayer structure whereby a lower magnetic layer is separated from an upper magnetic layer. The upper magnetic layer is ferromagnetically coupled to a bottom layer of the upper shield. The bias direction of the read head sensor is antiparallel to the bottom layer of the upper shield.

AF-coupled dual side shield reader with AF-coupled USL

A two-dimensional magnetic recording (TDMR) multi-sensor read head has three stacked sensors separated by magnetic shields. The lower sensor is the primary sensor that is always aligned with the target track. The middle sensor is spaced laterally from the lower sensor a distance substantially equal to the track pitch (TP). The upper sensor is aligned with the lower sensor. The spacing D between the lower and upper sensors is selected to be related to TP and a maximum skew angle, where the skew angle is the angle between a line orthogonal to the sensor and the data track that varies with radial position of the head. The read head is connected to circuitry that selects two of the three sensors to be the active sensors depending on the radial position of the head and thus the skew angle of the head.

Current-perpendicular-to-the-plane (CPP) magnetoresistive (MR) sensor structure with stacked sensors for minimization of the effect of head skew

To provide a method which can define the direction and orientation of magnetization of a pinned layer while reducing the number of steps of forming a GMR film. The magnetization direction of the pinned layer is defined in a plurality of directions by forming a plurality of patterns having directivities. Further, when the magneto-resistive effect film is formed, a magnetic field is applied in a direction at an angle set between the angles of the plurality of patterns.

Method for producing magnetoresistive effect element, magnetic sensor, rotation-angle detection device

According to one embodiment, a magnetoresistive head has a magnetoresistive sensor film between a lower shield layer and an upper shield layer. The magnetoresistive sensor film is formed by stacking at least a pinning layer, a first ferromagnetic layer, an intermediate layer, and a second ferromagnetic layer, in which a sense current flows so as to pass through an interface between the intermediate layer and the second ferromagnetic layer, and a resistance change of the magnetoresistive sensor film in accordance with the change of an external magnetic field is detected. Also, a lateral side metal layer having an electric resistivity lower than the electric resistivity of the pinning layer is disposed at least on a side wall of the pinning layer among side walls of layers constituting the magnetoresistive sensor film, the lateral side metal layer being in contact with the lower shield layer. Other embodiments are described as well.

CPP structure magnetoresistive head

A magnetic recording read head is provided capable of achieving high reproduction output, resolution, and SNR, even at a high linear density. There is also provided a magnetic recording and reproducing device capable of achieving sufficient error bit rate. The magnetic recording read head includes a differential read head and a write head. The differential read head has a multilayer structure formed by laminating a first magnetoresistive sensor having a first free layer, a differential gap layer, and a second magnetoresistive sensor having a second free layer. Outside the multilayer structure, a pair of electrodes and a pair of magnetic shields are provided respectively. A ratio (Gl/bl) of an inside distance (Gl) between the first and second free layers to a bit length (bl) is set to 0.6 or more and 1.6 or less.

Magnetic recording and reproducing device including a differential read head

A magnetoresistive magnetic head according to one embodiment uses a current-perpendicular-to-plane magnetoresistive element having a laminate of a free layer, an intermediate layer, and a pinned layer, the pinned layer being substantially fixed to a magnetic field to be detected, wherein either the pinned layer or the free layer includes a Heusler alloy layer represented by a composition of X&#x2014;Y&#x2014;Z, wherein X is between about 45 at. % and about 55 at. % and is Co or Fe, Y accounts for between about 20 at. % and about 30 at. % and is one or more elements selected from V, Cr, Mn, and Fe, and Z is between about 20 at. % and about 35 at. % and is one or more elements selected from Al, Si, Ga, Ge, Sn, and Sb, the other layer including a high saturation magnetization material layer having higher saturation magnetization than that of the Heusler alloy, and where the direction of the current flowing perpendicular to plane being a direction in which an electron flows from the Heusler alloy layer into the high saturation magnetization material layer. Additional embodiments are also presented.

Magnetoresistive magnetic head having a cpp element using a heusler alloy layer and a high saturation magnetization layer

Embodiments of the present invention help to provide a single element type differential magnetoresistive magnetic head capable of achieving high resolution and high manufacturing stability. According to one embodiment, a magnetoresistive layered film is formed by stacking an underlayer film, an antiferromagnetic film, a ferromagnetic pinned layer, a non-magnetic intermediate layer, a soft magnetic free layer, a long distance antiparallel coupling layered film, and a differential soft magnetic free layer. The long distance antiparallel coupling layered film exchange-couples the soft magnetic free layer and the differential soft magnetic free layer in an antiparallel state with a distance of about 3 nanometers through 20 nanometers. By manufacturing the single element type differential magnetoresistive magnetic head using the magnetoresistive layered film, it becomes possible to achieve the high resolution and the high manufacturing stability without spoiling the GMR effect.

Differential magnetoresistive magnetic head

Embodiments of the present invention provides sufficiently high exchange coupling with a magnetic layer and improve the yield and reliability of a magnetoresistive head. By using a tilted growth crystalline structured antiferromagnetic film manufactured by an oblique incident deposition method, a high exchange coupling field with a ferromagnetic film can be obtained. As a result, excellent reliability and high output can be obtained in a magnetoresistive head utilizing features in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.

Multilayered film having crystal grains grown at an inclination to a substrate, and magnetoresistive head using the film

Embodiments in accordance with the present invention provide a method of manufacturing a magneto-resistive head which can realize high sensitivity and good linear response characteristics with low noise even if a track width becomes narrower. A uniaxial anisotropy unaffected by annealing which is due to the orientation of the crystal grain growth direction, is induced in a magnetic layer. The free magnetic layer has the synthetic antiferromagnetic construction: first magnetic layer/interlayer antiferromagnetic coupling layer/second magnetic layer, the magnitude of the antiferromagnetic coupling is adjusted, and linear response characteristics are obtained even if a longitudinal biasing field applying mechanism is not provided.

Magneto-resistive head having a stable response property without longitudinal biasing and method for manufacturing the same

A spin-valve type magnetic head which has sufficiently high output is provided. In one embodiment, a structure in which high output coexists with high stability is achieved by letting a GMR-effect and a current-path-confinement effect manifest themselves at the same time in a GMR-screen layer consisting of a ferromagnetic metal spike-like part and a half-covering oxide layer.

CPP-GMR magnetic head having GMR-screen layer

Embodiments of the invention provide a magnetic recording and read head which reduces the spread read width in a narrow track having a width of 100 nm or less and shows stable read operation. In one embodiment, a side magnetic shield has a multi-layered structure including non-magnetic separate layers and soft magnetic layers, and the soft magnetic layers are magnetized in opposite directions to reduce a magnetic field induced by the side magnetic shield.

Magnetic head with laminated side shields

A magnetoresistive head and a fabricating method thereof accomplishing high sensitivity and low noise are provided even if track width narrowing makes progress. In one embodiment, a pinned layer includes a laminate which includes at least two magnetic layers and where adjacent magnetic layers are coupled antiferromagnetically to each other, and a mechanism to apply a longitudinal biasing field to a free layer is made to function by laminating a nonmagnetic separate layer/longitudinal biasing layer/antiferromagnetic layer connecting the free layer and opposite a nonmagnetic conductive layer (or nonmagnetic tunneling barrier layer). Controlling a magnetization direction of the longitudinal biasing layer which bears application of a longitudinal biasing field to the pinned layer and free layer is achieved by annealing carried out while applying a magnetic field in a track width direction and applying a magnetic field at room temperature.

Magnetoresistive head with improved in-stack longitudinal biasing layers

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Kanagawa, Japan

Kenichi Meguro