Patents Assigned to Headway Technologies, Inc.
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Patent number: 12211525Abstract: A read head is disclosed wherein a Spin Hall Effect (SHE) layer is formed on a free layer (FL) in a sensor and between the FL and top shield (S2). Preferably, the sensor has a seed layer, an AP2 reference layer, antiferromagnetic coupling layer, AP1 reference layer, and a tunnel barrier sequentially formed on a bottom shield (S1). When the stripe heights of the FL and SHE layer are equal, a two terminal configuration is employed where a current flows between one side of the SHE layer to a center portion thereof and then to S1, or vice versa. As a result, a second spin torque is generated by the SHE layer on the FL that opposes a first spin torque from the AP1 reference layer on the FL.Type: GrantFiled: September 20, 2023Date of Patent: January 28, 2025Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Wenyu Chen, Yan Wu
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Patent number: 12211526Abstract: A read head includes a permanent magnet (PM) layer formed up to 100 nm behind a free layer where PM layer magnetization may be initialized in a direction that adjusts free layer (FL) bias point, and shifts sensor asymmetry (Asym) closer to 0% for individual heads at slider or Head Gimbal Assembly level to provide a significant improvement in device yield. Asym is adjusted using different initialization schemes and initialization directions. With individual heads, initialization direction is selected based on a prior measurement of asymmetry. The PM layer is CoPt or CoCrPt and has coercivity from 500 Oersted to 1000 Oersted. The PM layer may have a width equal to the FL, or in another embodiment, the PM layer adjoins a backside of the top shield and has a width equal to or greater than that of the FL.Type: GrantFiled: October 30, 2023Date of Patent: January 28, 2025Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Glen Garfunkel, Yan Wu, Wenyu Chen, Kunliang Zhang, Min Li, Shohei Kawasaki
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Patent number: 12094497Abstract: The present embodiments can generally provide a magnetic write head structure with optimized gap current distribution to maximize the current-assisted areal density capacity (ADC) gain in hard-disk-drive storage devices. In a first example embodiment, a non-dual-write-shield (nDWS) write head can include a main pole (MP), a trailing shield (TS), and a write gap (WG) disposed between the MP and the TS. The write head can also include a side shield (SS), a leading shield (LS), and a write shield (WS). The write head can include a side gap (SG) between the MP and the SS on both sides of the MP tip, and a leading gap (LG) between the MP and the LS. The write head can also include a coil wrapped around the MP through a PP3 shield that is configured to direct a time-dependent write current to saturate magnetization of the MP.Type: GrantFiled: August 30, 2023Date of Patent: September 17, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Shehrin Sayed, Wenyu Chen, Yue Liu, Kowang Liu, Tetsuya Roppongi, Haowen Ren, Yuhui Tang, Moris Musa Dovek, Wenjie Chen
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Patent number: 12073857Abstract: The present embodiments relate to a perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) write head with an STO element and configured to direct an electric current between elements of the write head. A first example embodiment describes a perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) write head. The PMR write head can include a main pole comprising a tip portion disposed adjacent to an air bearing surface (ABS) and is configured to interact with a magnetic recording medium. The PMR write head can also include a spin torque oscillator (STO) element disposed adjacent to the main pole. The PMR write head can also include a side shield layer with a portion of the side shield layer disposed adjacent to the ABS. The PMR write head can also include a metallic side gap layer disposed between the main pole and the side shield layer.Type: GrantFiled: February 15, 2023Date of Patent: August 27, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Kei Hirata, Kowang Liu, Yue Liu, Jiun-Ting Lee, Weihao Xu
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Patent number: 12068008Abstract: A STRAMR structure is disclosed. The STRAMR structure can include a spin torque oscillator (STO) device in a WG provided between the mail pole (MP) trailing side and a trailing shield. The STO device, includes: a flux guiding layer that has a negative spin polarization (nFGL) with a magnetization pointing substantially parallel to the WG field without the current bias and formed between a first spin polarization preserving layer (ppL1) and a second spin polarization preserving layer (ppL2); a positive spin polarization (pSP) layer that adjoins the TS bottom surface; a non-spin polarization preserving layer (pxL) contacting the MP trailing side; a first negative spin injection layer (nSIL1) between the ppL2 and a third spin polarization preserving layer (ppL3); and a second negative spin injection layer (nSIL2) between the ppL3 and the pxL, wherein the nFGL, nSIL1, and nSIL2 have a spin polarization that is negative.Type: GrantFiled: January 30, 2023Date of Patent: August 20, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Wenyu Chen, Shohei Kawasaki, Tetsuya Roppongi
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Patent number: 12014758Abstract: The present embodiments relate to a heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write head with a NFT bi-layer structure with a bottom taper, which can be applied to one or both layers of the two layers. A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write head can include a main pole including a tip portion configured to interact with a magnetic recording medium at an air-bearing surface (ABS). The HAMR write head can further include a near-field transducer (NFT) that includes a dielectric waveguide, a plasmon generator (PG) layer, and a second layer. The second layer can include a thermo-mechanically stable material disposed adjacent to the PG layer. Further, the PG layer and the second layer can form a taper angle relative to the ABS ranging between 30 and 60 degrees.Type: GrantFiled: February 7, 2023Date of Patent: June 18, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Weihao Xu, Tobias Maletzky
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Iridium film with a thin iridium template layer for a heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) writer
Patent number: 11996126Abstract: The present embodiments relate to a heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write head with an iridium (Ir) film. The Ir film can include a body layer and a plasmon generator (PG) film comprising Iridium with a thin Ir seed layer. The Ir seed layer can be in direct contact with a dielectric (aluminum oxide). The thickness of the Ir film can be 40 nanometers or less including both a body layer and the seed layer. Incorporating Iridium as a material used for a PG can be a high surface plasmon efficient material with also being reliable under high temperature irradiation during a heat-assisted writing process.Type: GrantFiled: September 30, 2022Date of Patent: May 28, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Koji Shimazawa, Shengyuan Wang, Yukinori Ikegawa -
Patent number: 11978488Abstract: The present embodiments relate to a PMR write head with a trailing shield that comprises a FeCoNiM composition. The FeCoNiM composition can be formed via an electroplating process by adding Fe2+, Co2+, Ni2+ and a transition metal salt to an aqueous solution comprised of other additives in an electroplating cell that has an Ni or Co as the anode. The plated HD magnetic material as the trailing shield in a PMR writer can minimize a wide area track erasure (WATE). Further, a high moment high damping shield can lower bit error rate (BER) and increase aerial density capability (ADC) of the write head.Type: GrantFiled: April 11, 2023Date of Patent: May 7, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Xiaomin Liu, Wenjie Chen, Yue Liu, Weihao Xu, Yuhui Tang, Feiyue Li
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Patent number: 11973310Abstract: A light source unit for thermally-assisted magnetic head includes a substrate member having a first bonding surface; a light source assembly attached on the first bonding surface of the substrate member and having a second bonding surface; and a heater circuit assembly formed between the substrate member and the light source assembly, the heater circuit assembly having a heater formed on the substrate member and two leads connected at two ends of the heater, the lead being thicker than the heater, thereby a distance between the heater and the second bonding surface is farther than that between the lead and the second bonding surface. The light source unit can reduce mechanical stress and thermal conduction between a light source assembly and a substrate member, thereby improving the performance of the light source assembly and the heater.Type: GrantFiled: July 9, 2019Date of Patent: April 30, 2024Assignees: SAE MAGNETICS (H.K.) LTD., HEADWAY TECHNOLOGIES, INC.Inventors: Takashi Honda, Kowang Liu, Kwun Pan Ng, Makoto Kawato
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Patent number: 11894031Abstract: A near field transducer (NFT) having improved reliability is disclosed. In some embodiments, a NFT includes a resonator body layer having a front side at a first plane that is recessed a first distance from an air bearing surface (ABS), and a peg layer that is a single layer made of a noble metal or alloy thereof. The peg layer includes a peg portion or peg with a front side at the ABS, a back side at the first plane, and two sides aligned orthogonal to the ABS and separated by the first cross-track width. The peg portion or the peg having a single peg grain with or without a desired (111) orientation through laser self-annealing process.Type: GrantFiled: December 30, 2022Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignees: Headway Technologies, Inc., SAE Technologies Development (Dongguan) Co., Ltd., SAE Magnetics (Hong Kong) LimitedInventors: Xuhui Jin, Pengbo Yang, Koji Shimazawa, Hong Guo, Qinghui Guo, Vincent Man Fat Chiah
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Patent number: 11895928Abstract: A three terminal spin-orbit-torque (SOT) device is disclosed wherein a free layer (FL) with a switchable magnetization is formed on a Spin Hall Effect (SHE) layer comprising a Spin Hall Angle (SHA) material. The SHE layer has a first side contacting a first bottom electrode (BE) and an opposite side contacting a second BE where the first and second BE are separated by a dielectric spacer. A first current is applied between the two BE, and the SHE layer generates SOT on the FL thereby switching the FL magnetization to an opposite perpendicular-to-plane direction. The SHE layer is a positive or negative SHA material, and may be a topological insulator such as Bi2Sb3. A top electrode is formed on an uppermost hard mask in each SOT device. A single etch through the FL and SHE layer ensures a reliable first current pathway that is separate from a read current pathway.Type: GrantFiled: October 3, 2019Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Jesmin Haq, Tom Zhong, Luc Thomas, Zhongjian Teng, Dongna Shen
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Patent number: 11887635Abstract: A read head includes a permanent magnet (PM) layer formed up to 100 nm behind a free layer where PM layer magnetization may be initialized in a direction that adjusts free layer (FL) bias point, and shifts sensor asymmetry (Asym) closer to 0% for individual heads at slider or Head Gimbal Assembly level to provide a significant improvement in device yield. Asym is adjusted using different initialization schemes and initialization directions. With individual heads, initialization direction is selected based on a prior measurement of asymmetry. The PM layer is CoPt or CoCrPt and has coercivity from 500 Oersted to 1000 Oersted. The PM layer may have a width equal to the FL, or in another embodiment, the PM layer adjoins a backside of the top shield and has a width equal to or greater than that of the FL.Type: GrantFiled: July 1, 2022Date of Patent: January 30, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Glen Garfunkel, Yan Wu, Wenyu Chen, Kunliang Zhang, Min Li, Shohei Kawasaki
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Patent number: 11875825Abstract: A perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) writer is disclosed. A write current passes through a driving coil and a bucking coil generates a magnetic flux that passes through the main pole tip and is used to write one or more magnetic bits in a magnetic medium. The improved PMR writer includes a double driving coil (DDC) design, in which a second electric current path in parallel with the driving coil through the main pole tip is added to drive the main pole in the same direction as the top driving coil.Type: GrantFiled: July 22, 2022Date of Patent: January 16, 2024Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventor: Yue Liu
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Patent number: 11823712Abstract: A PMR (perpendicular magnetic recording) write head is configured for measurements at the slider level and wafer-level processing stages that will allow a determination of the pole width at a position A (PWA) using the results of a resistance measurement between a main pole (MP) and surrounding write shields (WS) with a layer of conductor in the write gap and a layer of insulating material replacing the side gaps. Knowledge of an accurate value of PWA allows adjustments to be made in the processing of sliders on each rowbar which, in turn improves the capability of delivering the desired statistical variation (sigma) in the distribution of erasure widths for AC signals (EWACS) in a given design which, in turn, gives better overall performance in hard disk drive (HDD) applications.Type: GrantFiled: August 19, 2020Date of Patent: November 21, 2023Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventor: Yan Wu
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Patent number: 11804242Abstract: A read head is disclosed wherein a Spin Hall Effect (SHE) layer is formed on a free layer (FL) in a sensor and between the FL and top shield (S2). Preferably, the sensor has a seed layer, an AP2 reference layer, antiferromagnetic coupling layer, AP1 reference layer, and a tunnel barrier sequentially formed on a bottom shield (S1). When the stripe heights of the FL and SHE layer are equal, a two terminal configuration is employed where a current flows between one side of the SHE layer to a center portion thereof and then to S1, or vice versa. As a result, a second spin torque is generated by the SHE layer on the FL that opposes a first spin torque from the AP1 reference layer on the FL.Type: GrantFiled: November 29, 2022Date of Patent: October 31, 2023Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Wenyu Chen, Yan Wu
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Patent number: 11790940Abstract: A method of forming a PMR (perpendicular magnetic recording) head that includes a tapered write pole that is fully surrounded by wrapped-around magnetic shields, including laterally disposed side shields, a trailing shield and a leading shield. A layer of high magnetic saturation material (high Bs) is formed on the leading edge of the trailing shield and extends rearward, away from the ABS plane to define a cross-sectional write gap shape that is not conformal with the shape of the tapered write pole. The cross-sectional shape of this shield layer enables it to absorb flux from the write pole so that the flux for writing is enhanced and concentrated at the area of the recording medium being written upon and does not extend to adjacent tracks or to downtrack positions at which such flux is not desired.Type: GrantFiled: June 29, 2018Date of Patent: October 17, 2023Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Sanghyun Lim, Yuhui Tang, Yaguang Wei, Yue Liu, Moris Dovek
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Patent number: 11756577Abstract: A spin injection assisted magnetic recording structure is disclosed wherein a ferromagnetic (FM) layer and at least one spin preservation (SP) layer are formed between a main pole (MP) trailing side and a write shield (WS). Current (Ia) flows between the MP and WS, or is injected into the FM layer. As a result, the spin polarized electrons from the FM layer, which flow across one or two SP layers to generate a magnetization that enhances one or both of a local WS magnetization and return field, and a local MP magnetization and write field, respectively. A lead to the FM layer may be stitched to enable lower resistance and improve reliability. The FM layer may be recessed from the ABS to allow more overlap with the SP layer for lower current density while maintaining performance. Higher linear density and area density capability, and better reliability are achieved.Type: GrantFiled: November 24, 2021Date of Patent: September 12, 2023Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventor: Yan Wu
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Patent number: 11715491Abstract: Methods of critical dimension (CD) uniformity control for magnetic head devices are disclosed. In some embodiments, a method can include providing a film stack, the film stack including a substrate, a magnetoresistive (MR) sensor layer, and a hard mask layer, patterning the hard mask layer using a first mask that defines critical shape patterns other than the CD, forming a mandrel pattern using a second mask that defines the CD, and forming a sidewall spacer pattern on sidewalls of the mandrel pattern, and removing the mandrel pattern.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 2021Date of Patent: August 1, 2023Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Tom Zhong, Hiroshi Omine, Jianing Zhou, Kunliang Zhang, Ruhang Ding, Min Li
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Patent number: 11699460Abstract: A PMR (perpendicular magnetic recording) write head includes a main write pole (MP) that is surrounded by magnetic shields, including laterally disposed side shields (SS), a trailing shield (TS) and a leading shield (LS). The leading shield includes a leading-edge taper (LET) that conformally abuts a tapered side of the write pole. The leading-edge shield and the leading-edge taper can be independently recessed in a proximal direction away from an air bearing surface (ABS) plane so that one or the other of them is recessed and the other remains coplanar with the ABS, or both are recessed by independent amounts. In another configuration the LS is not planar but has a recessed portion in a center track region and two surrounding regions that are coplanar with the ABS plane.Type: GrantFiled: March 30, 2022Date of Patent: July 11, 2023Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Ying Liu, Yuhui Tang, Yue Liu, Kei Hirata
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Patent number: 11699461Abstract: The present embodiments relate to a thermally-assisted magnetic recording (TAMR) head. A magnetic assist current can be applied to the TAMR head to assist in reducing timing jitter as the TAMR head interacts with a magnetic recording material. The TAMR head can include a main write pole including a tip portion and configured to direct a magnetic field for interacting with a magnetic recording medium. The TAMR head can include a laser diode to heat the magnetic recording medium and a dynamic fly height (DFH) heating element for dynamically controlling a height of the main write pole. The heating element can be of a parallel bias circuit that directs a direct current (DC) bias current flow along an electrical path from the magnetic yoke element to the tip portion of the main write pole adjacent to an air bearing surface (ABS).Type: GrantFiled: April 29, 2022Date of Patent: July 11, 2023Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Bogdan Florin Valcu, Tobias Maletzky, Weihao Xu, Alain Truong, Yue Liu