Tdk Corporation

Sae Magnetics (h.k.) Limited

Noriaki Kasahara

Takeo Kagami

Koji Shimazawa

Kazuki Sato

Naoto Matono

Takamitsu Sakamoto

Koichi Otani

Naoki Ohta

Satoru Araki

Nozomu Hachisuka

Hiromichi Umehara

Tetsuya Kuwashima

Shin Narushima

Olivier Redon

Norikazu Ota

Hiroshi Kiyono

Takayasu Kanaya

Hitoshi Hatate

Hidetaka Kawano

Teruyo Kagotani, Legal Representative

Kei Hirata

Tetsuya Roppongi

Kenji Yokoyama

Satoshi Miura

Yoshiaki Tanaka

Tetsuro Sasaki

Shunji Saruki

Tatsuya Harada

Kenkichi Anagawa

Yasutoshi Fujita

Yuichi Watabe

Michitaka Nishiyama

Hiroaki Kawashima

Tsuneo Kagotani

Kentaro Nagai

Hirotaka Gomi

Yuji Otsubo

Sohei Horiuchi

Hitoshi Hatake

Kento Edakara

The present invention relates to a method for forming a dry etching mask. A plurality of aluminum oxide films are sequentially sputtered on a material to be dry etched in such a manner that etching rate with respect to reactive ion etching increases toward a lower layer. On a laminated film of the plurality of aluminum oxide films, there is formed a first mask that has etching resistance with respect to the reactive ion etching. Reactive ion etching is performed from above the first mask to form a second mask of the laminated film.

Method of forming mask for dry etching and manufacturing method of magnetic head using the same method

A perpendicular recording thin-film magnetic head comprises a main magnetic pole having a tip main magnetic pole part extending in a height direction from a medium-opposing surface and a base main magnetic pole part connected to the tip main magnetic pole part on a side opposite from the medium-opposing surface side and wider than the tip main magnetic pole part in a track width direction; a return yoke extending in the height direction from the medium-opposing surface and magnetically coupling with the base main magnetic pole part at a position distanced from the medium-opposing surface in the height direction, while opposing the tip main magnetic pole part through a write gap layer in a bit length direction in the medium-opposing surface; and a main magnetic pole adjacent magnetic shield layer extending along at least part of side faces of the main magnetic pole other than the medium-opposing surface as seen in a laminating direction, while holding a nonmagnetic layer between the main magnetic pole and the main magnetic pole adjacent magnetic shield layer.

Thin-film magnetic head for perpendicular magnetic recording and method of making the same

A magnetic head includes: a coil; a pole layer; a shield having an end face located in a medium facing surface forward of an end face of the pole layer along a direction of travel of a recording medium; a gap layer between the shield and the pole layer; and a substrate on which the foregoing elements are stacked. The top surface of the pole layer includes: first and second portions with a difference in height therebetween; and a third portion connecting the first and second portions to each other. The first portion has an edge located in the medium facing surface, and the second portion is located farther from the medium facing surface and from the substrate than the first portion. The magnetic head further includes a nonmagnetic layer disposed between the second portion and the gap layer. The nonmagnetic layer has a surface touching the second portion, the surface having an edge located at the boundary between the second and third portions. The nonmagnetic layer has a thickness equal to or greater than the difference in height between the first and second portions.

Magnetic head for perpendicular magnetic recording with a shield and a pole layer having a top surface with first and second portions at different heights, and method of manufacturing same

A thin film magnetic head includes a main magnetic pole layer conducting a magnetic flux to the recording medium so that the recording medium an be magnetized in a direction orthogonal to a surface thereof; a return yoke layer disposed on a trailing side of the main magnetic pole layer; an intermediate protective layer partially disposed on a magnetic shield layer; and a thermal expansion suppressing layer having an edge located on the intermediate protective layer and being in contact with the return yoke layer in an area where the intermediate protective layer is not formed. If the thin film magnetic head is affected by ambient temperature environment, the thermal expansion suppressing layer suppresses the shift of the main magnetic pole layer and the return yoke layer toward the air bearing surface. This suppresses thermal protrusion from occurring on the thin film magnetic head due to ambient temperature environment.

Thin film magnetic head having thermal expansion layer for suppressing thermal protrusion

Provided is a thin film magnetic head capable of suppressing an occurrence of a track erase, decreasing an influence on a magnetoresistive element caused by a magnetic flux generated from a thin film coil, and further decreasing the parasitic capacity. The thin film magnetic head has, in order in a stacked direction, a first magnetic shield layer, a magnetoresistive element, a second magnetic shield layer, a third magnetic shield layer, a main magnetic pole layer and a return yoke layer. A width in a track width direction of at least one of the first and the second magnetic shield layers is smaller than widths in a track width direction of the third magnetic shield layer and the return yoke layer.

Thin film magnetic head, head gimbal assembly, head arm assembly and magnetic disk device

A perpendicular magnetic write head includes an auxiliary magnetic pole layer disposed on a trailing or leading side of a main magnetic pole layer, the auxiliary magnetic pole layer being recessed from the main magnetic pole layer. A nonmagnetic layer is disposed in a layer same as the auxiliary magnetic pole layer and in front of the auxiliary magnetic pole layer, the nonmagnetic layer having an internal stress of a direction same as that of the main magnetic pole layer, and a write shield layer is disposed in a layer same as the auxiliary magnetic pole layer and in front of the auxiliary magnetic pole layer, the write shield layer being separated from the main magnetic pole layer with a gap layer in between. The nonmagnetic layer is arranged to fill up a space between the auxiliary magnetic pole layer and the write shield layer.

Perpendicular magnetic write head having a structure that suppresses unintended erasure of information on a write medium at a non-writing time

A magnetic head includes a pole layer, a first and a second shield disposed to sandwich the pole layer, and a nonmagnetic layer disposed around the first shield. The pole layer includes a first portion having an end face located in a medium facing surface, and a second portion that is located farther from the medium facing surface than is the first portion. The second portion is greater in thickness than the first portion. A bottom surface of the second portion is located closer to a substrate than is a bottom surface of the first portion. The first shield has a first top surface portion opposed to the bottom surface of the first portion with the first gap layer in between. The nonmagnetic layer has a second top surface portion opposed to the bottom surface of the second portion with the first gap layer in between. A difference in level is formed between the first and the second top surface portion such that the second top surface portion is located closer to the substrate than is the first top surface portion.

Magnetic head for perpendicular magnetic recording and method of manufacturing the same, the magnetic head including pole layer and two shields sandwiching the pole layer

A thin film magnetic head is provided, in which thermal protrusion can be suppressed. The thin film magnetic head includes a main magnetic pole layer which conducts a magnetic flux into the recording medium so that the recording medium is magnetized in a direction perpendicular to a surface of the recording medium, a first return yoke layer provided in a trailing side of the main magnetic pole layer, and has a recess in a top surface, a second return yoke layer provided so as to fill at least the recess of the first return yoke layer, and a thermal expansion suppression layer provided in a trailing side of the second return yoke layer. Thus, since the thermal expansion suppression layer can be provided on a surface having no recess, a possibility of a crack in the thermal expansion suppression layer can be eliminated.

Thin film magnetic head in which thermal protrusion is suppressed and method of forming the same

Composite thin-film magnetic head includes a substrate; a first insulation layer on the substrate; an MR read head element on the first insulation layer and provided with a lower shield layer, an upper shield layer and an MR layer with a sense current flowing perpendicular to a surface of the MR layer though the upper and lower shield layers; a second insulation layer on the MR read head element; an inductive write head element on the second insulation layer and provided with a lower magnetic pole layer, a recording gap layer, an upper magnetic pole layer with end portion opposed to an end portion of the lower magnetic pole layer through the recording gap layer and a write coil; and a nonmagnetic conductive layer electrically conducted with the lower shield layer and opposed to the substrate to increase the electrode area between the lower shield layer and the substrate.

Composite thin-film magnetic head with non-magnetic conductive layer electrically connected with lower pole layer to increase counter electrode area

A thin film magnetic head has an air bearing surface and comprises magnetic shield layers, an MR element, bias-applying layers, and a hard magnetic layer. Each of the magnetic shield layers has an end face forming the air bearing surface, and an end face located opposite to the end face. The MR element is located between the magnetic shield layers and on the end face side. The bias-applying layers are located between the magnetic shield layers and are arranged to apply a bias magnetic field to the MR element. The hard magnetic layer is located between the magnetic shield layers and on the end face side. A height of the hard magnetic layer is larger than &#x2153; and smaller than &#xbd; of a height of each magnetic shield layer.

Thin film magnetic head

The thin-film magnetic head of the present invention comprises an MR sensor wherein a first ferromagnetic layer in which a magnetization direction is fixed with respect to external magnetic fields, a non-magnetic intermediate layer, and a second ferromagnetic layer in which a magnetization direction changes with respect to the external magnetic fields are stacked, and wherein a sense current flows substantially parallel to the stacked layer surface. The thin-film magnetic head comprises a pair of bias layers for exerting a bias magnetic field upon the MR sensor; the bias layers extending substantially symmetrically from two sides of the MR sensor in a direction of track width of a recording medium, each bias layer being connected with the MR sensor over a length which is substantially the same as the MR sensor in a direction perpendicular to the air bearing surface; and each bias layer having a shape which is contained within an imaginary rectangle which has its long sides along the air bearing surface in the direction of the track width of the recording medium and its short sides in the direction perpendicular to the air bearing surface and which contacts the short side of the imaginary rectangle which is opposite the short side which contacts the MR sensor. The thin-film magnetic head further comprises a pair of lead layers for supplying the sense current to the MR sensor each extending from the air bearing surface to cover at least a portion of each of the bias layers.

Thin-film magnetic head comprising bias layers having a large length in track width direction

Composite thin-film magnetic head with non-magnetic conductive layer to balance parasitic capacitances

A magnetic head is provided for further improving a correlation between the dynamic characteristics and static characteristics. A lower magnetic shield layer, a magneto-resistive layer, and an upper magnetic shield layer are laminated on a base in this order. A lower lead layer and an upper lead layer apply a sense current to the magneto-resistive layer in a direction substantially perpendicular to the film plane thereof through the magnetic shield layers. The lower magnetic shield layer and upper magnetic shield layer have their shapes and sizes which substantially exactly overlap each other, when viewed in a laminating direction. The lower lead layer is electrically connected to the lower magnetic shield layer. At least a portion of the lower lead layer closer to the lower magnetic shield layer is made of a non-magnetic conductive material. The upper lead layer is electrically connected to the upper magnetic shield layer. At least a portion of the upper lead layer closer to the upper magnetic shield layer is made of a non-magnetic conductive material.

CCP Head having leads of substantially the same size and shape and not intervening between a shield layer and a MR element

In a thin film magnetic head of the present invention, lead formation patterns of a first lead for connection between a lower shield layer and a first extraction electrode portion and a second lead for connection between an upper shield layer and a second extraction electrode portion are each formed so as not to have an overlapping portion with a heatsink layer but to bypass the heatsink layer when observing from the upper shield layer side toward the lower shield layer in a transparent state in plan view. Therefore, it is possible to increase an effect of heat radiation to the substrate side on the basis of the presence of the heatsink layer to thereby limit propagation of heat to a magnetoresistive effect layer as much as possible and further to achieve a drastic improvement in recording and reproducing characteristics at high recording frequencies, i.e. frequency characteristics (f characteristics) in a high frequency region.

Thin film magnetic head, head gimbal assembly, and hard disk drive

A parasitic capacity Cgenerated between a slider substrate and the first shield layer with the first insulating layer as a capacity layer is made substantially equal to a parasitic capacity Coccurring between a lower magnetic layer and the second shield layer with the third insulating layer as a capacity layer. Preferably, a connection is made between the lower magnetic layer and the slider substrate by a resistance of preferably 100 (&#x3a9;) or lower. Thus, it is possible to provide a thin-film magnetic head that can hold back deterioration in a reproducing device and the occurrence of errors due to crosstalk between a recording device and the reproducing device and extraneous noises.

Thin-film magnetic head, head gimbal assembly and hard disk system

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Noriaki Kasahara