Abstract: Embodiments in accordance with the present invention provide a magnetic head slider capable of securing a larger flying margin even when position variations occur at the time of flying. Embodiments of the present invention also provide a magnetic head slider having an excellent flying following capability. A read element and a write element of a magnetic head slider are arranged on a spherical or ellipsoidal projection and this projection is formed on a thin film magnetic head part. This may prevent a flying margin from being reduced by variations in flying position and may prevent a manufacturing step from being caused on the spherical or ellipsoidal projection. Moreover, by making the constituent ratio of the thin film magnetic head part on an air-bearing surface of the magnetic head slider 100 to be 7% or more, the read element and the write element are arranged at a pressure center position on the center rail surface of the air-bearing surface.

Abstract: A magnetic head for perpendicular magnetic recording includes a slider having an air bearing surface (ABS) and a trailing surface and a transducer fabricated on the trailing surface. The transducer includes a magnetoresistive (MR) read element disposed within a gap material bounded by shield material, an adjunct pole, and a main pole formed in an adjacent layered relationship to the adjunct pole. The adjunct pole has a front edge that is recessed from the ABS and a rear edge. The main pole has a write tip that extends approximately to the ABS. The transducer further includes a write coil having a first layer of turns below the adjunct pole and above the shield material. The magnetic head also includes a heating element with a portion of the heating element below the write coil and behind the rear edge of the adjunct pole.

Abstract: A thin-film magnetic head that shows stable read and/or write performances, maintaining the reliability over time by suppressing the wear of the head sufficiently, is provided. The head comprises: a substrate having an element-formed surface and an opposed-to-medium surface; a magnetic head element; an overcoat layer formed on the element-formed surface so as to cover the magnetic head element; a closure provided on the overcoat layer, a surface of the closure being in contact with the upper surface of the overcoat layer; and an element contact pad formed in a sliding-side surface of the head and having a contact surface including a part of the opposed-to-medium surface, a part of an end surface of the overcoat layer and a part of an end surface of the closure, one end of the magnetic head element reaching the contact surface.

Abstract: Actuator arm includes an island coupling through a mote to at least two of actuator base, first and second actuator arm bridge. Head stack including at least one actuator arm. Head stack assembly including head stack. Hard disk drive including head stack assembly. Manufacturing methods for actuator arm, head stack, head stack assembly, and hard disk drive, and the products of these processes.

Abstract: Magnetoresistive (MR) elements having flux guides defined by the free layer are disclosed. The MR element includes a free layer, a spacer/barrier layer, a pinned layer, and a pinning layer. A back edge of the free layer (opposite the sensing surface of the MR element) extends past a back edge of the spacer/barrier layer. The portion of the free layer extending past the back edge of the spacer/barrier layer defines a continuous flux guide. The flux guide is processed to reduce the conductive characteristics of the flux guide, thereby reducing current shunt loss in the flux guide.

Abstract: If the length of a track-defining section from an air bearing surface varies due to tolerance during a head manufacturing process, the recording magnetic field changes, which involves the variation of the track width to be recorded on the medium. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the main magnetic pole of a magnetic head includes a track-defining section shaped in trapezoid and a magnetic flux guiding section formed in trapezoid, as viewed from above. The track-defining section is formed such that its width parallel to the air bearing surface (ABS) increases at the rate of 10 to 20% with respect to its height-direction length. The rate of 10 to 20% is a range in which the shape is properly controllable taking into account the variations resulting from the tolerance of the head manufacturing process.

Abstract: Shock performance and stiffness of hard disk drive lifters are enhanced by extending one or more portions of a load beam in a dimension normal to the load beam plane. A load beam in a high shock suspension system comprises a planar body having transverse members extending between longitudinal rails. One embodiment comprises a lifter integral to the load beam, extending distally, and comprising a rib having a conic cross section and a lifting tab having upward curving edges. Another embodiment comprises rails having edges bending upward at 90 degrees, separated by a first width at a proximal end of the body, and tapering to a second width at a distal end of the body. A narrow lifter having upward curving edges is displaced between the rails, and extends distally from the body. Stiffeners extend from the rails and connect to an intermediate point on the lifter.

Abstract: A micro-actuator frame for a head gimbal assembly includes a bottom support adapted to be connected to a suspension of the head gimbal assembly, a top support adapted to support a slider of the head gimbal assembly, a pair of side arms that interconnect the bottom support and the top support, and a micro-actuator mounting structure provided to the bottom support. The micro-actuator mounting structure is constructed and arranged to maintain a substantially constant gap between the top support and the suspension of the head gimbal assembly in use.

Abstract: When the flying height of a magnetic head slider lowers, there arises the problem that the magnetic head slider assumes a forwardly falling attitude and a front edge portion of a leading end of the magnetic head slider comes into contact with a magnetic disk surface, causing damage to the disk surface. To address the problem, one aspect of the invention is directed to a magnetic head slider which includes an air bearing surface, a leading end and a trailing end. Three flying pads are formed on the air bearing surface and a step bearing surface is formed around the first and second flying pads near the leading end and a negative pressure groove for producing a negative pressure is formed in such a manner that the leading side is surrounded by the step bearing surface. The third flying pad is formed near the trailing end and is provided with a magnetic head. A step bearing is formed on the leading side of the third flying pad.

Abstract: A current perpendicular to plane (CPP) magnetoresistive sensor having a current path defined by first and second overlying insulation layers between which an electrically conductive lead makes content with a surface of the sensor stack. The current path being narrower than the width of the sensor stack allows the outer edges of the sensor stack to be moved outside of the active area of the sensor. This results in a sensor that is unaffected by damage at outer edges of the sensor layers. The sensor stack includes a free layer that is biased by direct exchange coupling with a layer of antiferromagnetic material (AFM layer). The strength of the exchange field can be controlled by adding Cr to the AFM material to ensure that the exchange field is sufficiently weak to avoid pinning the free layer.

Abstract: The invention includes a disk damper containing an extended area located on the upstream side of the head stack assembly. The extended area is joined to a tail section. In the extended area, the disk damper provides a wall near the neighboring rotating disk surface that extends from the outside diameter to the inside diameter of the rotating disk surface. Experimental results have shown that this provides much more consistent dampening of disk vibrations and vibrations of a head stack assembly positioned anywhere from the inside diameter to the outside diameter. The hard disk drive including the disk damper. Using the disk damper in a hard disk drive to improve the reliability of the hard disk drive during track following. Making the hard disk drive using the disk damper, and the hard disk drive as a product of that manufacturing process.

Abstract: A HGA includes a slider and a suspension for supporting the slider. The suspension includes a load beam, a base plate, and a flexure, which are assembled together. The flexure has a suspension tongue with a suspension through hole defined therein at a position corresponding to a center of the slider mounted on the suspension tongue. A dimple is provided to connect the suspension tongue and the load beam. The dimple has a first bump, a second bump and a shaft connecting the first and the second bumps. The shaft of the dimple extends through the suspension through hole to limit the suspension tongue between the first and the second bumps. Meanwhile, a manufacturing method of the HGA and a disk drive unit with the HGA are disclosed.

Abstract: A disk drive that regenerates a desiccant within the drive. The drive includes a housing that encloses a head and a disk. A first desiccant is located adjacent to a hole of the housing. A second desiccant is coupled to the first desiccant. The second desiccant is also coupled to a source of heat. Heat is transferred through the second desiccant to the first desiccant. The heat evaporates fluid within the first desiccant. The evaporated fluid flows into and through the second desiccant. The evaporation of fluid regenerates the first desiccant so that is can continuously absorb humidity within the drive.

Abstract: A method and system for utilizing an interlocking dissimilar metal component in the formation of a hard disk drive is disclosed. The method provides a hard disk drive component having at least one interlocking dissimilar metal component, the at least one interlocking dissimilar metal component having at least two dissimilar metals on a single side. The interlocking dissimilar metal component is utilized to provide a similar materials weld location for coupling two dissimilar metals to a single side surface of the at least one interlocking dissimilar metal hard disk drive component.

Abstract: A magnetic head includes a wafer substrate and a conductive underlayer formed directly on the substrate. An insulating layer is formed above the conductive layer. A reader and/or writer thereof is formed above the insulating layer. Another magnetic head includes a substrate and an insulating underlayer formed above the substrate. A conductive underlayer is formed above the insulating underlayer. An insulating layer is formed above the conductive underlayer. At least one device is formed above the insulating layer, the at least one device being selected from a group consisting of readers, writers, and combinations thereof. Tape drive systems and methods for forming such heads are also presented.

Abstract: A head suspension for a hard disk drive has a base attached to a carriage of the hard disk drive and is turned around a spindle. A load beam includes a rigid part and a resilient part which applies load onto a head at a front end of the load beam to write and read data to and from a disk arranged in the hard disk drive. The rigid part is supported to the base through the resilient part. A flexure is attached to at least the rigid part of the load beam and has read/write wiring patterns connected to the head. A recessed portion or a through-hole portion is formed in at least one of the load beam and the base for avoiding vibration contact of the flexure.

Abstract: Provided is an MR effect element in which the magnetization of the pinned layer is stably fixed even after going through high temperature process. The MR effect element comprises: a non-magnetic intermediate layer; a pinned layer and a free layer stacked so as to sandwich the non-magnetic intermediate layer; an antiferromagnetic layer stacked to have a surface contact with the pinned layer, for fixing a magnetization of the pinned layer to a direction in-plane of the pinned layer and perpendicular to a track width direction; and hard bias layers provided on both sides in the track width direction of the free layer, for applying a bias field to the free layer, a product ?S×? of a saturation magnetostriction constant ?S of the pinned layer and an internal stress ? on a cross-section perpendicular to a layer surface of the hard bias layer being negative.

Abstract: The invention provides a giant magneto-resistive effect device (CPP-GMR device) having a CPP (current perpendicular to plane) structure comprising a spacer layer, and a fixed magnetized layer and a free layer stacked one upon another with said spacer layer interleaved between them, with a sense current applied in a stacking direction, wherein the spacer layer comprises a first and a second nonmagnetic metal layer, each formed of a nonmagnetic metal material, and a semiconductor oxide layer interleaved between the first and the second nonmagnetic metal layer, wherein the semiconductor oxide layer that forms a part of the spacer layer is made of indium oxide (In2O3), or the semiconductor oxide layer contains indium oxide (In2O3) as its main component, and an oxide containing a tetravalent cation of SnO2 is contained in the indium oxide that is the main component.

Abstract: A write shield layer that forms a part of a thin-film magnetic head is set with respect to the widthwise full length W thereof lying substantially on an air bearing surface that is opposite to the recording medium such that when the full length W is trisected, the maximum thickness H1/3side thereof in a range of widthwise ?W size positioned at both ends thereof is larger than the average thickness Hm of the whole write shield layer from the air bearing surface up to the rear (H1/3side>Hm), so that the so-called external magnetic field resistance is improved, and inadvertent erasure of the information already recorded in the recording medium is avoided as much as possible. Besides, the PTP (pole tip protrusion) phenomenon arising from the generation of heat from coils, and external temperature changes can be held back.

Abstract: A head stack assembly of a disk drive has a hub including a side margin defining a channel for carrying VCM conductors at least partially around an angular offset such that the conductors are contained within a peripheral outline of the hub and the conductors can extend completely within an overmolding thickness. A first portion of a flexible interconnection biases against a side margin of the hub such that a rotation of the HSA causes a length of the first portion to change. A floating portion of length of the flexible extension follows a semicircular path between a first contact position on the hub and a second contact position on the support surface such that a floating loop diameter is defined between the contact positions. The hub and the support surface can be configured for changing the floating loop diameter with rotation to vary resilient biasing torque to the HSA.