Patents Examined by Kevin Bernatz
  • Patent number: 9646635
    Abstract: Implementations disclosed herein allow a signal detected by a magnetoresistive (MR) sensor to be improved by providing for one or more alloyed layers that each includes a ferromagnetic material and a refractory material. The alloyed layers are provided adjacent to a shield element or between soft magnetic layers of the sensor stack.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: SEAGATE TECHNOLOGY LLC
    Inventors: Eric W. Singleton, Liwen Tan, Jae-Young Yi, Konstantin Nikolaev
  • Patent number: 9643385
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are layered Heusler alloys. The layered Heusler alloys can comprise a first layer comprising a first Heusler alloy with a face-centered cubic (fcc) crystal structure and a second layer comprising a second Heusler alloy with a fcc crystal structure, the second Heusler alloy being different than the first Heusler alloy, wherein the first layer and the second layer are layered along a layering direction, the layering direction being the [110] or [111] direction of the fcc crystal structure, thereby forming the layered Heusler alloy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: The Board of Trustees of The University of Alabama
    Inventors: William H. Butler, Kamaram Munira, Javad G. Azadani
  • Patent number: 9637612
    Abstract: A method for alignment of high aspect ratio materials (HARMs) within a liquid matrix by means of magnetic particles. The application of an external magnetic field creates a forced motion of the magnetic particles. This in turn leads to a laminar flow within the matrix which imposes a drag force on the HARMs, aligning the HARMs across the matrix. The used magnetic particles eventually accumulate at one end side of the matrix container and can be removed either by an incision or an extraction process. Unlike the previously proposed methods, there is no need for the magnetic particles to be attached either physically or chemically to the HARMs. Thus, the ultimate aligned HARMs are mostly pure and free of any magnetic particles. Once the matrix is a polymeric solution, the mentioned method is capable of synthesis of aligned HARMs-polymer composites, which exhibit improved mechanical and electrical properties.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2017
    Assignee: FERDOWSI UNIVERSITY OF MASHHAD
    Inventors: Ehsan Moaseri, Morteza Maghrebi, Majid Baniadam
  • Patent number: 9640752
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, a magnetoresistive element includes a recording layer having magnetic anisotropy perpendicular to a film surface and having a variable magnetization direction, a reference layer having magnetic anisotropy perpendicular to a film surface and having an invariable magnetization direction, an intermediate layer provided between the recording layer and the reference layer, and a underlayer containing AlTiN and provided on an opposite side of a surface of the recording layer on which the intermediate layer is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2017
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Eiji Kitagawa, Tadashi Kai, Hiroaki Yoda
  • Patent number: 9640213
    Abstract: A perpendicular magnetic recording medium includes a perpendicular magnetic layer provided above a nonmagnetic substrate, and a protection layer provided on the perpendicular magnetic layer. The perpendicular magnetic layer has an hcp structure, and includes stacked layers having a (0002) crystal plane oriented parallel to a surface of the nonmagnetic substrate. An uppermost layer amongst the stacked layers includes polycrystal grains selected from a CoCr-base alloy, a CoPt-base alloy, a CoCrPt-base alloy, and a CoPtCr-base alloy. The protection layer makes contact with the uppermost layer of the perpendicular magnetic layer, and includes a single graphene layer or a graphene stack, and an amorphous carbon layer. The single graphene layer or the graphene stack is bonded in parallel to a (0002) crystal plane of the polycrystal grains.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2017
    Assignees: SHOWA DENKO K.K., JAPAN ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY
    Inventors: Kota Hasegawa, Takahiro Ukai, Eishin Yamakawa, Shiro Entani, Seiji Sakai
  • Patent number: 9630882
    Abstract: A coil electronic component includes a magnetic body containing a ferrite; and a coil part including a plurality of conductive patterns disposed in the magnetic body. The ferrite contains 48 to 50 mol % of iron oxide calculated in terms of Fe2O3, 8 to 12 mol % nickel oxide calculated in terms of NiO, 28 to 31 mol % zinc oxide calculated in terms of ZnO, and 7 to 13 mol % copper oxide calculated in terms of CuO.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRO-MECHANICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Young Il Lee, Byeong Cheol Moon
  • Patent number: 9627114
    Abstract: Described embodiments include a system, method, and apparatus. The apparatus includes a magnetic substrate at least partially covered by a first negative-permittivity layer comprising a first plasmonic outer surface. The apparatus includes a plasmonic nanoparticle having a magnetic element at least partially covered by a second negative-permittivity layer comprising a second plasmonic outer surface. The apparatus includes a dielectric-filled gap between the first plasmonic outer surface and the second outer surface. The first plasmonic outer surface, the dielectric-filled gap, and the second plasmonic outer surface are configured to support one or more mutually coupled plasmonic excitations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2017
    Inventors: Gleb M. Akselrod, Roderick A. Hyde, Muriel Y. Ishikawa, Jordin T. Kare, Maiken H. Mikkelsen, Tony S. Pan, David R. Smith, Clarence T. Tegreene, Yaroslav A. Urzhumov, Charles Whitmer, Lowell L. Wood, Jr., Victoria Y. H. Wood
  • Patent number: 9627115
    Abstract: Described embodiments include a system, method, and apparatus. The apparatus includes a plasmonic nanoparticle dimer. The dimer includes a first plasmonic nanoparticle having a first magnetic element covered by a first negative-permittivity layer comprising a first plasmonic outer surface. The dimer includes a second plasmonic nanoparticle having a second magnetic element covered by a second negative-permittivity layer comprising a second plasmonic outer surface. The dimer includes a separation control structure configured to establish a dielectric-filled gap between the first plasmonic outer surface and the second plasmonic outer surface. A magnetic attraction between the first magnetic element and the second magnetic element binds the first plasmonic nanoparticle and the second plasmonic nanoparticle together, separated by the dielectric-filled gap established by the separation control structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2017
    Inventors: Gleb M. Akselrod, Roderick A. Hyde, Muriel Y. Ishikawa, Jordin T. Kare, Maiken H. Mikkelsen, Tony S. Pan, David R. Smith, Clarence T. Tegreene, Yaroslav A. Urzhumov, Charles Whitmer, Lowell L. Wood, Jr., Victoria Y. H. Wood
  • Patent number: 9607644
    Abstract: A magnetic recording medium having a thick magnetic recording layer of excellent magnetic characteristics is provided. The magnetic recording medium includes a non-magnetic substrate and a magnetic recording layer. The magnetic recording layer includes a plurality of first magnetic recording layers located at odd-numbered positions from the non-magnetic substrate, and one or more second magnetic recording layers located at even-numbered positions from the non-magnetic substrate. The first magnetic recording layers each have a granular structure that has first magnetic crystal grains with an ordered alloy and a first non-magnetic portion surrounding the first magnetic crystal grains and formed of a material having carbon as main component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: FUJI ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Tomohiro Moriya
  • Patent number: 9607647
    Abstract: A magnetic-disk glass substrate of the present invention has a pair of main surfaces, and an arithmetic mean roughness (Ra) for wavelength components of 10 to 50 nm of the surface of the main surfaces is 0.15 nm or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: HOYA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masanobu Itaya, Kinobu Osakabe
  • Patent number: 9601135
    Abstract: A device that includes a near field transducer (NFT); at least one cladding layer adjacent the NFT; and a discontinuous metal layer positioned between the NFT and the at least one cladding layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignee: Seagate Technology LLC
    Inventors: Tong Zhao, Michael Christopher Kautzky, Michael Allen Seigler, Yongjun Zhao, Jay Jayashankar, Xiaoyue Huang
  • Patent number: 9595286
    Abstract: A magnetic-disk glass substrate has a circular center hole, a pair of main surfaces and an edge surface. The edge surface has a side wall surface and chamfered surfaces interposed between the side wall surface and the main surfaces, and a roundness of an edge surface on an outer circumferential side is 1.5 ?m or less. Also, a midpoint A between centers of two least square circle respectively derived from outlines in a circumferential direction respectively obtained at two positions spaced apart by 200 ?m in a substrate thickness direction on the side wall surface on the outer circumferential side, and centers B and C respectively derived from a respective one of two chamfered surfaces on the outer circumferential side in the substrate thickness direction, are located such that a sum of respective distances between A and B, and A and C, is 1 ?m or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2017
    Assignee: HOYA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masanori Tamaki, Takeyoshi Takahashi, Masaaki Ueda
  • Patent number: 9595283
    Abstract: A magnetic-disk glass substrate capable of suppressing turbulence of air flow in a vicinity of an outer circumferential side edge portion of the magnetic disk and suppressing disk flutter is provided. This magnetic-disk glass substrate includes a pair of main surfaces, a side wall surface formed on an outer circumferential side edge surface, and chamfered surfaces interposed between the side wall surface and the main surfaces, respectively. The side wall surface has a roundness of 1.5 ?m or less. A difference in radius between an inscribed circle and a circumcircle of a plurality of outlines of the side wall surface at a plurality of positions that include a central position of the magnetic-disk glass substrate in a thickness direction and are different from each other in the thickness direction is 5 ?m or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2017
    Assignee: HOYA CORPORATION
    Inventor: Masanori Tamaki
  • Patent number: 9595284
    Abstract: A magnetic-disk glass substrate has a circular hole at a center, and includes a pair of main surfaces and a side wall surface orthogonal to the main surfaces. A roundness of the circular hole is 1.5 ?m or less. A difference between a maximum value and a minimum value of radii of three inscribed circles that are respectively derived from outlines in the circumferential direction at three positions spaced apart by 200 ?m in a substrate thickness direction on the side wall surface of the circular hole is 3.5 ?m or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2017
    Assignee: HOYA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Masanori Tamaki, Takeyoshi Takahashi, Masaaki Ueda
  • Patent number: 9589586
    Abstract: A glass for a magnetic recording medium substrate permitting the realization of a magnetic recording medium substrate affording good chemical durability and having an extremely flat surface, a magnetic recording medium substrate comprised of this glass, a magnetic recording medium equipped with this substrate, and methods of manufacturing the same. The glass compositions disclosed comprise oxides of at least Si, Al, Li, Na, K, Sn and Ce, optionally Sb, but not comprising As or F. Additional oxides of Mg, Cs, Sr and Ba may be present. The oxides are presented as molar percentages, mass percentages and ratios thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Assignee: HOYA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoichi Hachitani, Kinobu Osakabe
  • Patent number: 9583128
    Abstract: A magnetic-disk glass substrate according to the present invention is a doughnut-shaped magnetic-disk glass substrate having a circular hole provided in the center, a pair of main surfaces, and an outer circumferential end surface and an inner circumferential end surface each including a side wall surface and a chamfered surface that is formed between each main surface and the side wall surface. A measurement point is provided on the outer circumferential end surface every 30 degrees in the circumferential direction with reference to a center of the glass substrate, and when a curvature radius of a shape of a portion between the side wall surface and the chamfered surface is determined at each measurement point, the difference in the curvature radius between neighboring measurement points is 0.01 mm or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: HOYA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takeyoshi Takahashi, Masaaki Ueda
  • Patent number: 9577184
    Abstract: A TMR sensor that includes a free layer having at least one B-containing (BC) layer made of CoFeB, CoFeBM, CoB, CoBM, or CoBLM, and a plurality of non-B containing (NBC) layers made of CoFe, CoFeM, or CoFeLM is disclosed where L and M are one of Ni, Ta, Ti, W, Zr, Hf, Tb, or Nb. One embodiment is represented by (NBC/BC)n where n?2. A second embodiment is represented by (NBC/BC)n/NBC where n?1. In every embodiment, a NBC layer contacts the tunnel barrier and NBC layers each with a thickness from 2 to 8 Angstroms are formed in alternating fashion with one or more BC layers each 10 to 80 Angstroms thick. Total free layer thickness is <100 Angstroms. The free layer configuration described herein enables a significant noise reduction (SNR enhancement) while realizing a high TMR ratio, low magnetostriction, low RA, and low Hc values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2017
    Assignee: Headway Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Tong Zhao, Hui-Chuan Wang, Yu-Chen Zhou, Min Li, Kunliang Zhang
  • Patent number: 9564166
    Abstract: A magnetic-disk glass substrate of the present invention has an average value of squares of inclinations of 0.0025 or less and a frequency at which squares of inclinations are 0.004 or more of 15% or less, in a case where samples of inclinations on a main surface are obtained at intervals of 10 nm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2017
    Assignees: HOYA CORPORATION, HOYA GLASS DISK VIETNAM II LTD.
    Inventors: Masanobu Itaya, Kinobu Osakabe, Toshio Takizawa
  • Patent number: 9564153
    Abstract: A substrate for suspension comprises a metallic substrate, an insulating layer formed on the metallic substrate, a conductor layer formed on the insulating layer, and a cover layer covering the conductor layer. The insulating layer and the cover layer are formed from different materials, whose coefficients of hygroscopic expansion are in the range between 3×10?6/% RH and 30×10?6/% RH. The difference between the coefficients of hygroscopic expansion of the two materials is 5×10?6/% RH or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2017
    Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yoichi Hitomi, Shinji Kumon, Terutoshi Momose, Katsuya Sakayori, Kiyohiro Takachi, Yoichi Miura, Tsuyoshi Yamazaki
  • Patent number: 9564152
    Abstract: Provided are a magneto resistive effect element with a stable magnetization direction perpendicular to a film plane and with a controlled magnetoresistance ratio, and a magnetic memory using the magneto resistive effect element. Ferromagnetic layers 106 and 107 of the magneto resistive effect element are formed from a ferromagnetic material containing at least one type of 3d transition metal such that the magnetoresistance ratio is controlled, and the film thickness of the ferromagnetic layers is controlled on an atomic layer level such that the magnetization direction is changed from a direction in the film plane to a direction perpendicular to the film plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2017
    Assignee: TOHOKU UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Hideo Ohno, Shoji Ikeda, Fumihiro Matsukura, Masaki Endoh, Shun Kanai, Hiroyuki Yamamoto, Katsuya Miura