Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.v.

Hgst Netherlands, B.v.

Western Digital (fremont), Inc.

Western Digital Technologies, Inc.

Headway Technologies, Incorporated

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies

Yi Zheng

Aron Pentek

Sue Siyang Zhang

Wen-Chien David Hsiao

Ming Jiang

Vladimir Nikitin

Guomin Mao

Yimin Hsu

Liubo Hong

Yinshi Liu

Hung-Chin Guthrie

Hamid Balamane

Honglin Zhu

Edward Hin Pong Lee

Donald Giles Allen

Katalin Pentek

Amanda Baer

Hicham Moulay Sougrati

Hieu Lam

Qiping Zhong

Edward H P Lee

Quang Le

Yingjian Chen

Howard Gordon Zolla

Jyh-Shuey Jerry Lo

Patrick Rush Webb

Ning Shi

Quan-chiu Harry Lam

Nian Xiang Sun

Fenglin Liu

Daniel Wayne Bedell

Christian Rene Bonhote

Andrew Chiu

Yuming Zhou

Kyusik Shin

Thomas J A Roucoux

Yvette Chung Nga Winton

Aaron Neuhaus

Prabodh Ratnaparkhi

Cherngye Hwang

David John Seagle

Daniele Mauri

James Mac Freitag

Kim Yang Lee

Stefan Maat

Ming Mao

Jordan Asher Katine

Jui-lung Li

Ying Hong

Douglas Johnson Werner

Michael R Feldbaum

Guanxiong Li

Xiaozhong Dang

Anup Roy

Shiwen Huang

Thao Pham

Mary Kathryn Gutberlet

Yi-Chun Liu

Shuxia Wang

Xhavin Sinha

Terence T L Lam

Masaya Nishioka

Hong Du

Xianzhong Zeng

Donald G Allen

Valeri Synogatch

Thomas Dudley Boon, Jr

Hamid Balamame

Clarence Kai-Sheng Hsieh

Jerry Lo

A write pole of a write head of a hard disk drive can be manufactured by forming a photoresist layer over a magnetic material layer located over a substrate, disposing a tri-tone lithographic mask over the photoresist layer, lithographically exposing the photoresist layer through the lithographic mask, developing the photoresist layer to form a patterned photoresist layer, and patterning the magnetic material layer into the write pole by removing portions of the magnetic material layer that are not covered by the photoresist layer. The tri-tone lithographic mask includes a patterned opaque material layer and a patterned partially-transparent material layer located over a transparent substrate. The patterned opaque material layer includes a uniform width region and a flare region. The patterned partially-transparent material layer includes a pair of partially-transparent strips extending adjacent to a respective edge of the patterned opaque material layer, and partially-transparent assist bars.

Method of making a hard disk drive write pole using a tri-tone attenuated phase shift mask

Systems and methods for controlling a thickness of a soft bias layer in a tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) reader are provided. One such method involves providing a magnetoresistive sensor stack including a free layer and a bottom shield layer, performing contiguous junction milling on the sensor stack, depositing an insulating layer on the sensor stack, depositing a spacer layer on the insulating layer, performing an angled milling sub-process to remove preselected portions of the spacer layer, depositing a soft bias layer on the sensor stack, and depositing a top shield layer on the sensor stack and the soft bias layer. The method can further involve adjusting an alignment of a top surface of the spacer layer with respect to the free layer. In one such case, the top surface of the spacer layer is adjusted to be below the free layer.

Systems and methods for controlling soft bias thickness for tunnel magnetoresistance readers

A method and system provide a magnetic transducer. An intermediate layer including multiple sublayers is provided. A trench is formed in the intermediate layer. A main pole having a bottom, a top wider than the bottom, a first side and a second side opposite to the first side is provided in the trench. An asymmetric gap is provided along the first and second sides of the main pole. The asymmetric gap terminates closer to the top of the main pole along the first side than on the second side. The asymmetric gap has a first thickness along the first side and a second thickness different from the first thickness along the second side. An asymmetric shield is provided on the asymmetric gap. The asymmetric shield includes a half side shield having a bottom between the top and the bottom of the main pole and terminating on the asymmetric gap.

Magnetic writer having an asymmetric gap and shields

Approaches for a magnetic write head having a stacked coil architecture. Embodiments utilize the better process control capability available with thin films' thicknesses, compared to the control capability of vertical gap-filling processes, which provides for better scalability to shorter yoke length magnetic write heads, which are faster at writing data bits than are magnetic write heads having a longer yoke length.

Magnetic write head having a stacked coil architecture for high data rate performance

The embodiments of the present invention relate to a method for forming a magnetic read head with pinned layers extending to the ABS of the read head and magnetically coupled with an antiferromagnetic layer that is recessed in relation to the ABS of the read head. Portions of the antiferromagnetic layer and a magnetic layer that are extending to the ABS are removed, exposing a shield. A shielding material is formed on the exposed shield and a seed layer is formed on the shield and on or over a portion of the remaining antiferromagnetic layer. A pinned layer structure is formed on the seed layer and the magnetic layer.

Recessed IRMN reader process

A method and system provide a magnetic transducer. An intermediate including multiple sublayers is provided. A trench is formed in the intermediate layer. A main pole having a bottom, a top wider than the bottom, a first side and a second side opposite to the first side is provided in the trench. An asymmetric gap is provided along the first and second sides of the main pole. The asymmetric gap terminates closer to the top of the main pole along the first side than on the second side. The asymmetric gap has a first thickness along the first side and a second thickness different from the first thickness along the second side. An asymmetric shield is provided on the asymmetric gap. The asymmetric shield includes a half side shield having a bottom between the top and the bottom of the main pole and terminating on the asymmetric gap.

Method for fabricating a magnetic writer having an asymmetric gap and shields

A magnetic head, according to one embodiment, includes a sensor structure extending from an air bearing surface end thereof in a stripe height direction, the sensor structure having sidewalls on opposite sides thereof, the sidewalls extending between a top and a bottom of the sensor structure, the sidewalls extending in the stripe height direction, wherein a spacing between the sidewalls in a track width direction along the top of the sensor structure is about constant therealong in the stripe height direction.

System and method of forming spacer structures using ultra narrow magnetic head fabrication

A method for manufacturing a magnetic read sensor allows for the construction of a very narrow trackwidth sensor while avoiding problems related to mask liftoff and shadowing related process variations across a wafer. The process involves depositing a plurality of sensor layers and forming a first mask structure. The first mask structure has a relatively large opening that encompasses a sensor area and an area adjacent to the sensor area where a hard bias structure can be deposited. A second mask structure is formed over the first mask structure and includes a first portion that is configured to define a sensor dimension and a second portion that is over the first mask structure in the field area.

Differentiated liftoff process for ultra-shallow mask defined narrow trackwidth magnetic sensor

A method for manufacturing a magnetic write pole using a mask that includes a multi-layer hard mask. The multi-layer hard mask hard mask includes a first hard mask layer that is constructed of a Si containing material that can be spun on and a second hard mask material that is deposited by a deposition process such as sputter deposition. The first hard mask layer has optical properties that allow it to function well as a bottom anti-reflective coating (BARC) and also has optical properties that match well with an underlying image transfer layer. The second hard mask material has good selectivity for reactive ion etching so that it functions well as a RIE hard mask.

Method for manufacturing a magnetic write pole using a multi-layered hard mask structure

The present invention generally relates to methods for forming a sensor structure utilizing a shallow and narrow hard mask stencil. In one embodiment, a sensor structure is formed by utilizing a four-layered hard mask stencil. The four-layered hard mask stencil includes a first mask layer, a second mask layer disposed over the first hard mask, a third mask layer disposed over the second mask layer, and a forth mask layer disposed over the third mask layer. In another embodiment, a sensor structure is formed by utilizing a three-layered hard mask stencil. The three-layered hard mask stencil includes a first mask layer, a second mask layer disposed over the first mask layer, and a third mask layer disposed over the second mask layer. The sensor structure is formed with a two-step chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) process.

Super shallow laminated hard mask stencil for magnetic read sensor fabrication

A method in one approach includes forming a first layer of a nonmagnetic material over two sides of a structure, the first layer being substantially absent from above a top of the structure; depositing an overlayer of an etchable, nonmagnetic material over the first layer and the top of the structure; and etching the overlayer for substantially removing the overlayer from above the top of the structure, wherein a substantial portion of the overlayer remains along the two sides of the structure after the etching. Additional systems and methods are also presented.

Method of fabricating a device having a sidegap

A method for manufacturing a magnetic write pole of a magnetic write head that achieves improved write pole definition reduced manufacturing cost and improves ease of photoresist mask re-work. The method includes the use of a novel bi-layer hard mask beneath a photoresist mask. The bi-layer mask includes a layer of silicon dielectric, and a layer of carbon over the layer of silicon dielectric. The carbon layer acts as an anti-reflective coating layer that is unaffected by the photolithographic patterning process used to pattern the write pole and also acts as an adhesion layer for resist patterning. In the event that the photoresist patterning is not within specs and a mask re-work must be performed, the bi-layer mask can remain intact and need not be removed and re-deposited. In addition, the low cost and ease of use silicon dielectric and carbon reduce manufacturing cost and increase throughput.

Method for manufacturing a magnetic write head using novel mask structure

A method for manufacturing a magnetic sensor that allows the sensor to be constructed with a very narrow track width and with smooth, well defined side walls. A tri-layer mask structure is deposited over a series of sensor layers. The tri-layer mask structure includes an under-layer, a Si containing hard mask deposited over the under-layer and a photoresist layer deposited over the Si containing hard mask. The photoresist layer is photolithographically patterned to define a photoresist mask. A first reactive ion etching is performed to transfer the image of the photoresist mask onto the Si containing hard mask. The first reactive ion etching is performed in a chemistry that includes CF, CHF, O, and He. A second reactive ion etching is then performed in an oxygen chemistry to transfer the image of the Si containing hard mask onto the under-layer, and an ion milling is performed to define the sensor.

Method for manufacturing a magnetoresistive sensor

A magnetic write head having a write pole and a trailing, wrap-around magnetic shield formed over the write pole and separated from the write pole by a non-magnetic trailing gap layer and non-magnetic side gap layers. The write head includes a remnant magnetic seed layer, that while being used to facilitate electroplating of the magnetic shield, is left intentionally extending beyond the back edge of the magnetic shield. This extended portion of the magnetic seed layer acts as a shunt for magnetic flux and prevents data erasure due to over-writing.

Magnetic write head having a residual shield seed layer for reducing overwriting

In one embodiment, a magnetic head includes a main pole having a trapezoidal cross-section at a media-facing surface thereof and a flared shape with a greater width in a cross-track direction at positions away from the media-facing surface, a leading shield positioned near a leading side of the main pole, wherein a leading gap is provided between the main pole and the leading shield, side shields positioned on both sides of the main pole in the cross-track direction adjacent the media-facing surface of the main pole, with side gaps provided between the main pole and both of the side shields, and a trailing gap provided on a trailing side of the main pole at the media-facing surface thereof, with a throat height of the side shields being less than the throat height of the side shields at a position closer to the trailing gap than the leading gap.

Tapered leading and side shields for use in a perpendicular magnetic recording head

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San Ramon, CA, United States of America

Yi Zheng