Abstract: A method and apparatus for sealing a hard disk drive with a low-density gas is provided. A valve body is positioned over an opening in the hard disk drive housing. The valve body is in communication with a source of low-density gas, a vacuum source and the interior of the disk drive. The vacuum source evacuates the internal cavity of the disk drive through the opening. The cavity is then filled with the low-density gas. A reciprocating member then positions a sealing member in the opening to seal the opening and capture the low-density gas within the disk drive.

Abstract: A head gimbal assembly, including a slider, a suspension having a slider holding plate, and an accessory plate mounted on the suspension having a dimple to partially hold the slider holder plate.

Abstract: An actuator with fewer components and a method of easily fabricating the actuator. The actuator includes first and second arm members stacked over each other, head gimbal assemblies respectively fixed to front ends of the pair of arm members, and a fastening mechanism fastening the pair of arm members. Each of the first and second arm members includes a core part coupled to the fastening mechanism and a blade part horizontally extending from the core part to have a different height from the core part and coupled to the head gimbal assembly. The blade part of the first arm member extends from the core part to have a greater height than the core part of the first arm member and the blade part of the second arm member extends from the core part to have a lower height than the core part of the second arm member so that a distance between the pair of blade parts of the pair of arm members can be greater than a width of a disk that is a data recording medium.

Abstract: A high output magneto-resistive sensor is provided by suppressing leftover resist mask after lift-off and generation of a fence, and by making it easy to remove the redepositions deposited on the side wall in the track width direction or on the side wall in the sensor height direction of the magnetoresistive film. As a means to solve a fence and lift-off leftover of a resist in a process for forming a track and a process for forming a sensor height, a stopper layer is provided on the magnetoresistive film and the stopper layer on the refill film, and performing lift-off by CMP. By using a metallic material which has a small CMP polishing rate for at least the first stopper layer, the magnetoresistive film and the first stopper layer can be etched simultaneously and a pattern formed. As a result, decrease of the height of the resist mask by RIE can be suppressed and lift-off leftover can be prevented.

Abstract: A magneto-resistive element comprising a free layer having two ferromagnetic layers having a nonmagnetic layer interposed therebetween are coupled with each other in an anti-ferromagnetic manner, a difference between an absolute value of a total of magnetizations of at least one ferromagnetic layer in which the magnetization direction is a first direction and an absolute value of a total of magnetizations of at least one ferromagnetic layer in which the magnetization direction is a second direction which is opposite to the first direction is equal to or smaller than 5×10?15 emu, and planes parallel to a substrate of the ferromagnetic layers are smaller as the planes are distant from the substrate.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide a read head which is implemented in a magnetic disk drive that supports a high recording density and a high transfer rate and is excellent in static electricity durability. In one embodiment, a magnetic head wherein a charge diffuses from a read element to a slider at a time constant of about 100 ms or less.

Abstract: A magnetic head for perpendicular magnetic recording comprises: a pole layer, a write shield layer, and a gap layer provided between the pole layer and the write shield layer. The pole layer incorporates a track width defining portion and a wide portion. The track width defining portion has an end located in a medium facing surface and defines the track width. The wide portion is coupled to the other end of the track width defining portion and has a width greater than the width of the track width defining portion. The value of NH×TH/WG is greater than zero and smaller than or equal to 0.85 ?m, where NH is the distance from the medium facing surface to the boundary between the track width defining portion and the wide portion, WG is the space between the pole layer and the write shield layer taken in the medium facing surface, and TH is the distance from the medium facing surface to a point at which the space between the pole layer and the write shield layer starts to be greater than WG.

Abstract: A magnetic head includes a plurality of coil elements disposed in a space defined by a lower core layer, a pole layer, and a back gap layer. A coil insulator fills the space so as to cover the coil elements. The top face of the pole layer, the top face of the coil insulator, the top faces of the coil elements, and the top face of the back gap layer form a planarized plane. The coil elements are disposed on a recess formed on the lower core layer. The bottom faces of the coil elements are disposed at substantially the same height as the top face of the lower core layer. The top faces of the coil elements lie in the planarized plane.

Abstract: A CPP magnetic sensing element is provided which may exhibit a large value of ?RA (the product of the resistance variation ?R and area A of the magnetic sensing element). The magnetic sensing element includes a free magnetic layer and a pinned magnetic layer. At least one of these layers has a (Co0.67Fe0.33)100-aZa alloy layer, wherein Z may represent at least one element selected from the group consisting of Al, Ga, Si, Ge, Sn, and Sb, and the parameter a may satisfy the relationship 0<a?30 in terms of atomic percent.

Abstract: An automated data storage library with storage shelves, data storage drive(s), a bus bar; and a robot accessor with a drive system for moving the robot accessor, an accessor communication interface, a bus bar relay configured to engage and disengage the bus bar; a robot control configured to operate the drive system to move the robot accessor, to operate the picker, to operate the bus bar relay to engage the bus bar when the robot accessor is stationary; and a power storage system configured to receive power via the bus bar relay when the bus bar relay engages the bus bar, to store the received power, and to deliver the stored power to the robot accessor at least when the bus bar relay is disengaged.

Abstract: A perpendicular magnetic recording element includes a recording magnetic pole film and a write shield film. The recording magnetic pole film has a yoke portion and a main magnetic pole for perpendicular recording. The main magnetic pole projects from a front end of the yoke portion to have an end on a medium-facing surface. The write shield film faces the recording magnetic pole film and has a height equal to or smaller than that of the recording magnetic pole film, as measured rearward from the medium-facing surface.

Abstract: A micro-actuator for a head gimbal assembly includes a metal frame, PZT elements, and a rigid beam. The metal frame includes a top support adapted to support a slider of the head gimbal assembly, and a pair of side arms extending vertically from respective sides of the top support. The top support includes a rotatable plate and connection arms that couple the rotatable plate to respective side arms. A PZT element is mounted to each of the side arms. Each PZT element is excitable to cause selective movement of the side arms. The rigid beam is mounted between the side arms at an end opposite the top support.

Abstract: A system and method for reducing corrosion in a fluid dynamic bearing is disclosed. In one embodiment, a fluid dynamic bearing comprising a rotor portion and a stator portion is formed. In addition, a corrosion inhibitor containing lubricating fluid is provided between the rotor portion and the stator portion of the fluid dynamic bearing, wherein the corrosion inhibitor containing lubricating fluid does not react with either the rotor portion or the stator portion of the fluid dynamic bearing.

Abstract: A suspension assembly installed on an end of a swing arm and elastically biasing a slider with a read/write head toward a surface of a disk in a disk drive. The suspension assembly includes a load beam coupled to the one end of the swing arm, a flexure coupled to the load beam and supporting the slider, and a hook limiter having a fixed end fixed to the flexure, and a free end extending toward a front end of the load beam and spaced a predetermined distance from the load beam.

Abstract: A disk device comprising: a turn table, a clamp head, a spindle motor and an elevating frame, wherein the turn table and the clamp head fixed to a driving shaft of the spindle motor disposed at a front end of the elevation frame disposed in a direction along a diagonal line inside of the disk device, and means for rocking a front end of the elevating frame up and down to clamp an optical disk by the clamp head and to hold the optical disk on the turn table or to release the clamping state of the held optical disk, wherein when the front end of the elevating frame descends, a horizontal state of a plane orthogonal to a diagonal line of the elevating frame is held, or either the left side or right side of the front end of the elevating frame is more inclined than the other.

Abstract: Magnetoresistive (MR) elements having pinning layers formed from a permanent magnetic material are disclosed. An MR element of the invention includes a first pinning layer, a first pinned layer, a first spacer/barrier layer, a free layer, a second spacer/barrier layer, a second pinned layer, and a second pinning layer. One of the first pinning layer or the second pinning layer is formed from a permanent magnetic material, such as CoPt or CoPtCr. The other of the first pinning layer or the second pinning layer is formed from an antiferromagnetic (AFM) material, such as IrMn or PtMn.

Abstract: An optical path or waveguide for a laser-assisted transducing head is disclosed. The optical path extends between the poles of the transducing head to near the write gap. A solid-state laser is attached to or incorporated into the slider or head and is positioned to direct thermal energy through a waveguide and onto a track of a read/write surface to lower the coercivity of the recording medium to facilitate the write process.

Abstract: A perpendicular magnetic recording data storage system combines a perpendicular medium that has a thin low-magnetic-permeability or “soft” underlayer (SUL) with a recording head that has a trailing shield (TS) with a thick throat height, i.e., a thickness in a direction orthogonal to the recording layer of the medium. The SUL is thin enough and has a low enough magnetic permeability to become saturated in a region beneath the trailing gap of the head during writing, but the throat height of the TS is thick enough to prevent the TS from becoming magnetically saturated during writing. The magnetic saturation of the SUL during writing changes the magnetic reluctance such that more of the magnetic flux going through the SUL changes direction (“field undershoot”) and goes to the TS. If the permeability of the SUL is so low (e.g.

Abstract: A formed in place damper for a data storage device. The damper is formed of an elastomeric bead which is cured to a cover or component to form a damper body having contoured shape or surface formed by an outer surface of the cured elastomeric bead. The damper is formed in place to a cover of the data storage device so that when the cover is assembled to a base, the damper is interposed between the cover or housing and a disc spindle assembly, actuator or voice coil motor. Alternatively the damper is formed to drive components, such as the disc spindle assembly, actuator or voice coil motor.

Abstract: A magnetoresistive sensor having improved pinning field strength. The sensor includes a pinned layer structure pinned by exchange coupling with an antiferromagnetic (AFM) layer. The AFM layer is constructed upon an under layer having treated surface with an anisotropic roughness. The anisotropic roughness, produced by an angled ion etch, results in improved pinning strength. The underlayer may include a seed layer and a thin layer of crystalline material such as PtMn formed over the seed layer. The magnetic layer may include a first sub-layer of NiFeCr and a second sub-layer of NiFe formed there over. The present invention also includes a magnetoresistive sensor having a magnetic layer deposited on an underlayer (such as a non-magnetic spacer) having a surface treated with an anisotropic texture. An AFM layer is then deposited over the magnetic layer.