Seagate Technology Incorporated

Ut-battelle, Inc.

Other

General Electric Company

Lockheed Martin Energy Research Corporation

Qing I He

Mark William Covington

Song Sheng Xue

Eric Walter Singleton

Wonjoon Jung

Dimitar Velikov Dimitrov

Wei Tian

Yonghua Chen

Mark Thomas Kief

Thomas Roy Boonstra

David K Christen

Xuefei Tang

Zheng Gao

Patrick Joseph Ryan

Bin Lu

Jae-Young Yi

Hong Ying Wang

Brian William Karr

Sunita B Gangopadhyay

Chunhong Hou

Juren Ding

Bryan K Oliver

Yunhao Xu

Matt Johnson

Michael C Kautzky

Lei Wang

Amit Goyal

John Eric Tkaczyk

Mariappan Parans Paranthaman

Sining Mao

Donald M Kroeger

Olle Gunnar Heinonen

Jason Bryce Gadbois

Dian Song

Eric Shane Linville

Konstantin Nikolaev

Michael B Hintz

Steven Carl Riemer

David P Norton

Dominic F Lee

Kenneth W Lay

Eliot D Specht

Brian C Sales

Kristin Joy Duxstad

Matthew Johnson

Dion Song

Frederick Alyious List, Iii

Hao Meng

Vladyslav Alexandrovich Vas'ko

Jae Young Yi

Robbee Lee Grimm

John D Budai

Brian J Daniels

John P Spangler

Craig A Ballentine

A magnetic sensor comprising a first shield and a second shield and a sensor stack between the first and the second shield, the sensor stack having a plurality of layers wherein at least one layer is annealed using in-situ rapid thermal annealing. In one implementation of the magnetic sensor a seed layer is annealed using in-situ rapid thermal annealing. Alternatively, one of a barrier layer, an antiferromagnetic (AFM) layer, and a cap layer is annealed using in-situ rapid thermal annealing.

Magnetic sensor manufacturing

A magnetic sensor assembly includes first and second shields each comprised of a magnetic material. The first and second shields define a physical shield-to-shield spacing. A sensor stack is disposed between the first and second shields and includes a seed layer adjacent the first shield, a cap layer adjacent the second shield, and a magnetic sensor between the seed layer and the cap layer. At least a portion of the seed layer and/or the cap layer comprises a magnetic material to provide an effective shield-to-shield spacing of the magnetic sensor assembly that is less than the physical shield-to-shield spacing.

Method for fabricating a magnetic sensor assembly

A method of making an MgO barrier layer for a TMR sensor, the method including depositing a first Mg layer in a first chamber, depositing a second Mg layer on the first Mg layer using a reactive oxide deposition process in the presence of oxygen in the first chamber or in a second chamber different than the first chamber, depositing a third Mg layer on the second MgO layer in either the first chamber, the second chamber, or a third chamber, and annealing the first layer, the second layer, and the third layer to form an MgO barrier layer.

Methods of forming MgO barrier layer

A magnetic sensor includes a magnetic layer comprising magnetic material and a grain refining agent. The magnetic layer having a grain-refined magnetic layer surface. A layer adjacent the magnetic layer has a layer surface that conforms to the grain-refined magnetic layer surface.

Magnetic layer with grain refining agent

Magnetic sensing device with reduced shield-to-shield spacing

A data reader may be configured with a tuned microstructure by initially cooling a substrate to a temperature of 100K or lower and subsequently depositing at least one layer of a data reader on the substrate while the substrate is maintained at the temperature. The tuned microstructure may consist of at least a grain size, grain size distribution, interface quality between multiple layers of the data reader, resistance-area product, and magnetoresistance.

Data reader with tuned microstructure

A data storage device may be constructed as a data reader in various embodiments with a magnetic stack that has a barrier layer disposed between first and second magnetically free layers. The magnetic stack may have a horizontally symmetrical configuration that provides negative exchange coupling between the magnetically free layers.

Tuned horizontally symmetric magnetic stack

An apparatus and associated method may be used to provide a data sensing element capable of detecting changes in magnetic states. Various embodiments of the present invention are generally directed to a magnetically responsive lamination of layers and means for generating a high magnetic moment region proximal to an air bearing surface (ABS) and a low magnetic moment region proximal to a hard magnet.

Magnetic element with dual magnetic moments

In certain embodiments, a tunneling magneto-resistive (TMR) sensor includes a sensor stack positioned between a seed layer and a cap layer. The seed layer includes a first buffer layer that includes a non-magnetic nickel alloy. In certain embodiments, a sensor stack includes a top and bottom shield and a seed layer positioned adjacent to the bottom shield. The seed layer has a first buffer layer that includes a nickel alloy.

Tunneling magneto-resistive sensors with buffer layers

An apparatus and associated method may be used to produce a magnetic element capable of detecting changes in magnetic states. Various embodiments of the present invention are generally directed to a magnetically responsive lamination of layers with a first portion and a laterally adjacent second portion. The second portion having a predetermined roughness between at least two layers capable of producing orange-peel coupling.

Magnetic element with enhanced coupling portion

In some embodiments, a current perpendicular to the plane giant magneto-resistance (CPP GMR) read sensor may include a reference layer and/or a free layer that includes a plurality of sub-layers. For example, at least one of the reference layer or free layer may include a first ferromagnetic sub-layer, a second ferromagnetic sub-layer, and a Heusler alloy layer located between the first ferromagnetic sub-layer and the second ferromagnetic sub-layer. In some embodiments, a CPP GMR read sensor may include a current closed path (CCP) spacer layer between the reference layer and the free layer. The CCP spacer layer may include Ag and AlO. In further embodiments, a CPP GMR read sensor may include a Heusler alloy free layer, a Heusler alloy reference layer, and a CCP spacer layer.

Data reader with heusler alloy reference lamination

A magnetoresistive device having a high giant magnetoresistance (GMR) value and a moderate low resistance area product (RA) includes a first magnetic layer, a second magnetic layer, and a current confined path (CCP) spacer layer positioned between the first magnetic layer and the second magnetic layer. The spacer layer includes copper current confined paths extending between the first magnetic layer and the second magnetic layer in a matrix of magnesium oxide. The spacer layer is formed by a mixture copper and magnesium oxide, which is heattreated to form the copper current confined paths within the magnesium oxide matrix.

CCP-CPP magnetoresistive reader with high GMR value

Growing community of inventors

Bloomington, MN, United States of America

Qing I He