Abstract: Reader asymmetry control has become an important issue as track widths continue to shrink. This has been achieved by providing adaptive adjustment to the asymmetry of individual heads in the form of an additional permanent hard magnet, which may be internal or external to the head. This special ‘tuning’ magnet biases the shields and the sensor to achieve suitable asymmetry and/or amplification. Head bias adjustments may be done individually or in batch. Both the internal and the external magnet versions are described.

Abstract: A magnetic read/write head and slider assembly and method for forming said magnetic read/write head and slider assembly, wherein said assembly has improved heat spreading and dissipation properties and exhibits significantly reduced thermal protrusion during operation. The method of formation is simple and efficient, involving only the extension of one of the conductive mounting pads so that it is in thermal contact with a portion of the slider assembly surface that is over the read/write element.

Abstract: A magnetic read/write head and slider assembly and method for forming said magnetic read/write head and slider assembly, wherein said assembly has improved heat spreading and dissipation properties and exhibits significantly reduced thermal protrusion during operation. The method consists of the formation of a heat sink layer on a portion of either the upper pole yoke or the lower magnetic pole of the writer.

Abstract: A magnetic read/write head and slider assembly and method for forming said magnetic read/write head and slider assembly, wherein said assembly has improved heat spreading and dissipation properties and exhibits significantly reduced thermal protrusion during operation. The method of formation is simple and efficient, involving only the extension of one of the conductive mounting pads so that it is in thermal contact with a portion of the slider assembly surface that is over the read/write element.

Abstract: A magnetic read head is described in which contact between the pinned layer and the AFM is limited to their edges. This still allows the pinned layer to be effectively pinned, but without the shunting effect of the AFM layer. Both TSV and BSV structures are disclosed as well as processes for their manufacture.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a magnetic read/write head and slider assembly, wherein the assembly has improved heat spreading and dissipation properties and the read/write head exhibits significantly reduced thermal protrusion during operation. The method of fabrication is simple and efficient, involving only the extension of at least one of the conductive mounting pads so that it is in thermal contact with a portion of the slider surface that is directly above the read/write element.

Abstract: A magnetic read/write head and slider assembly and method for forming the magnetic read/write head and slider assembly, wherein the assembly has improved heat spreading and dissipation properties and exhibits significantly reduced thermal protrusion during operation. The method consists of the formation of a heat sink layer on a portion of either the upper pole yoke or the lower magnetic pole of the writer.

Abstract: Reader asymmetry control has become an important issue as track widths continue to shrink. This has been achieved by providing adaptive adjustment to the asymmetry of individual heads by means of an additional permanent hard magnet, which may be internal or external to the head. This special ‘tuning’ magnet biases the shields and the sensor to achieve suitable asymmetry and/or amplification. Head bias adjustments may be done individually or in batch. Both the internal and the external magnet versions are described.

Abstract: As track densities increase, it becomes increasingly important, while writing in a given track, not to inadvertently write data in adjoining tracks. This problem has been overcome by limiting the width of material in the ABS plane to what it is at the write gap. The part of the lower pole that is wider than this is recessed back away from the ABS, thereby greatly reducing its magnetic influence on adjacent tracks. Four different embodiments of write heads that incorporate this notion are described together with a description of a general process for their manufacture.

Abstract: A magnetic read/write head and slider assembly and method for forming said magnetic read/write head and slider assembly, wherein said assembly has improved heat spreading and dissipation properties and exhibits significantly reduced thermal protrusion during operation. The method consists of the formation of a heat sink layer on a portion of either the upper pole yoke or the lower magnetic pole of the writer.

Abstract: A magnetic read/write head and slider assembly and method for forming said magnetic read/write head and slider assembly, wherein said assembly has improved heat spreading and dissipation properties and exhibits significantly reduced thermal protrusion during operation. The method of formation is simple and efficient, involving only the extension of one of the conductive mounting pads so that it is in thermal contact with a portion of the slider assembly surface that is over the read/write element.

Abstract: A thin film diode and method of fabrication having large current capability and low-turn on voltage is provided as a switching or protective device against electrostatic discharge in integrated devices such as magnetoresistive sensors and the like. A first semiconductor thin film layer of NiO.sub.x having p type properties is disposed on an arbitrary substrate, such as alumina, glass, silicon dioxide, silicon and the like. A second semiconducting layer of tin oxide or indium oxide or other transparent oxide is joined to the first layer to form a p/n junction. In one method of fabrication, the p/n junction is formed in a sputtering process under a partial oxygen pressure to control the stoichiometry of the films. Gold and Gold Indium contacts are attached to the films to provide electrical contacts. The device is enclosed in a protective coating and connected in parallel with an electronic device subject to electrostatic discharge.

Abstract: A method of lapping the air bearing surface of a magnetoresistive head which minimizes the likelihood of interelement shorts at the air bearing surface is described. In a final, linear lapping phase, the air bearing surface is lapped back and forth parallel to the longitudinal axis of the head elements in an oscillatory path across a stationary lapping surface. Any scratches or smears of the elements will be along the length of the elements rather than transverse to the elements. Any transverse scratches or smears occurring in earlier lapping phases will be removed during the linear lapping phase.

Abstract: In a disk drive actuator head stack assembly, magnetic transducers including magnetoresistive (MR) read heads are connected to a current source and configured to provide an MR sensor current to each MR head wherein the direction of current flow for the MR sensor current in each MR head is the same relative to the actuator for all of the MR heads in the actuator head stack. This configuration allows all of the MR heads in the head stack assembly to be initialized simultaneously by applying a homogeneous magnetic field to the head stack assembly, thus providing the capability of initializing the MR heads at the actuator or disk drive level rather than requiring that the MR heads be initialized individually.

Abstract: The present invention provides a test circuit and method for testing for short circuits in an MR head, merged MR head or piggyback MR head without contacting either of the shield layers. This is accomplished by a bridge circuit which employs part of the components of the head. The bridge circuit has four consecutively arranged branches which are interconnected by four consecutively arranged terminals. The first terminal comprises the substrate or one of the write pads and the second and fourth terminals comprise the first and second read pads. A signal generator is connected across the first and third terminals and a detector, such as a differential amplifier, is connected across the read pads.

Abstract: The magnetoresistive (MR) sensor in a magnetic read/write transducer is protected against the effects of electrical overstress and electrostatic discharge during the manufacture and assembly of a magnetic storage system. The conductive leads of a magnetoresistive (MR) sensor element are shorted together to provide a low resistance, conductive path bypassing the MR element and minimizing electrical current through the MR sensing element during discharge of static electrical charge. The MR sensor lead terminal pads provided on the transducer/slider surface are shorted together by soldering. The other transducer elements such as the MR magnetic shields, the inductive coil and the inductive magnetic yoke structure can also be shorted to the MR sensor leads by soldering together the lead terminal pads at the slider surface. Alternatively, a twisted conductor pair may be used to short the MR terminals together.