Patents by Inventor John Donegan

John Donegan has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Metal-insulator-metal near-field transducer for heat-assisted magnetic recording
    Patent number: 10360939
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are embodiments of a heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) device comprising a waveguide and a near-field transducer (NFT) coupled to the waveguide. The NFT comprises a core layer comprising an insulator, a first metal layer adjacent to the core layer, and a second layer adjacent to the first metal layer, wherein the second layer comprises a material that is substantially mechanically and thermally stable and thereby functions as a hard jacket to mitigate deformation of the NFT. The first metal layer may comprise a plasmonic metal, such as gold. The second layer may comprise tungsten, chromium, or a dielectric material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2019
    Assignees: Western Digital Technologies, Inc., The Provost, Fellows, Scholars and other Members of Board of Trinity College Dublin
    Inventors: Alexander Krichevsky, Frank Bello, Christopher Wolf, Fenghua Zong, Daniel Wolf, David McCloskey, Kyle Ballantine, John Donegan
  • METAL-INSULATOR-METAL NEAR-FIELD TRANSDUCER FOR HEAT-ASSISTED MAGNETIC RECORDING
    Publication number: 20190198053
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are embodiments of a heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) device comprising a waveguide and a near-field transducer (NFT) coupled to the waveguide. The NFT comprises a core layer comprising an insulator, a first metal layer adjacent to the core layer, and a second layer adjacent to the first metal layer, wherein the second layer comprises a material that is substantially mechanically and thermally stable and thereby functions as a hard jacket to mitigate deformation of the NFT. The first metal layer may comprise a plasmonic metal, such as gold. The second layer may comprise tungsten, chromium, or a dielectric material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 23, 2017
    Publication date: June 27, 2019
    Applicants: Western Digital Technologies, Inc., The Provost, Fellows, Foundation Scholars and the other members of the Board, of the College of the
    Inventors: Alexander KRICHEVSKY, Frank BELLO, Christopher WOLF, Fenghua ZONG, Daniel WOLF, David MCCLOSKEY, Kyle BALLANTINE, John DONEGAN
  • Architecture for metal-insulator-metal near-field transducer for heat-assisted magnetic recording
    Patent number: 10249336
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are embodiments of a heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) device comprising a waveguide and a near-field transducer (NFT) coupled to the waveguide in a direct-fire configuration. The NFT comprises an insulator core encased in a metal portion. The insulator core comprises a rectangular portion and a tapered portion, wherein the rectangular portion is between the waveguide and the tapered portion. The metal portion comprises a plasmonic metal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2019
    Assignees: Western Digital Technologies, Inc., The Provost, Fellows, Scholars and other Members of Board of Trinity College Dublin
    Inventors: Alexander Krichevsky, Frank Bello, Christopher Wolf, Fenghua Zong, Daniel Wolf, David McCloskey, Kyle Ballantine, John Donegan
  • Method and system for reducing undesirable reflections in a HAMR write apparatus
    Patent number: 9484051
    Abstract: A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write apparatus is coupled with a laser that provides energy. The HAMR write apparatus includes a pole, at least one coil, a waveguide, a near-field transducer (NFT) and at least one antireflective mechanism. The pole writes to a region of the media and includes a media-facing surface. The coil(s) energize the pole. The waveguide is optically coupled with the laser and includes a core and cladding. The waveguide is for directing a portion of the energy toward the NFT, which is located in a transmission direction from the core of the waveguide. The antireflective mechanism(s) are in at least one of a first position in the waveguide, a second position in the NFT and a third position between the waveguide and the NFT.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2016
    Assignees: THE PROVOST, FELLOWS, FOUNDATION SCHOLARS AND THE OTHER MEMBERS OF BOARD, OF THE COLLEGE OF THE HOLY AND UNDIVIDED TRINITY OF QUEEN ELIZABETH NEAR DUBLIN, WESTERN DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    Inventors: Alexander Krichevsky, Christopher B. Wolf, Frank D. Bello, Kyle E. Ballantine, John Donegan, David Michael Owen McCloskey
  • Assays Using Nanoparticles
    Publication number: 20090197291
    Abstract: A method for quantitatively and qualitatively determining the presence of a macromolecule comprises providing nanoparticles in a buffered solution, adding a test sample to the buffered nanoparticle solution, and measuring the difference between the buffered nanoparticles in the presence and absence of the test sample. The nanoparticles are preferably less than 100 nm in size.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 27, 2006
    Publication date: August 6, 2009
    Inventors: Yuri Volkov, Yury Rakovich, Louri Kuzmich Gounko, John Donegan, Dermot Kelleher, Siobhan Mitchell