Abstract: A processing apparatus includes a rotatable blade, a blade driving shaft, a table, a position driving mechanism, a first sensor, a second sensor, a start/stop point information extraction section, a characteristic-vibration-information extraction section, and a characteristic-vibration-information extraction section. The shaft drives the blade. The table places a workpiece to be processed. The mechanism changes a relative position between the blade and the workpiece. The first sensor detects a vibration generated by driving the blade. The second sensor detects a vibration generated by driving the blade. The start/stop point information extraction section extracts at least one of a start point information regarding a contact start point and a stop point information regarding a contact stop point based on a detection result of the second sensor.

Abstract: A manufacturing method of a thin-film head includes the steps of, laminating and patterning a soft magnetic layer with iron alloy that contains silicon and aluminum through a base layer on a substrate; laminating an insulating layer on the patterned soft magnetic layer; performing a chemical-mechanical polishing of a surface of the laminated insulating layer and the patterned soft magnetic layer with a first acid slurry; forming a lower shield layer by a mechanical polishing with a second weak acid, or neutral slurry with a pH different from that of the first slurry; and forming a lower shield gap layer and a magnetoresistive effect layer on the lower shield layer.

Abstract: A polishing method includes the steps of, performing a chemical-mechanical polishing with a first acid slurry, in the case of polishing soft magnetic layer with iron alloy that contains silicon and aluminum, and performing a mechanical polishing with a second weak acid or neutral slurry with a pH different from that of the first slurry.