Abstract: A magneto-resistance effect head is provided with a lower conductive layer which is provided with a recessed portion, and a vertical bias layer is provided in the recessed portion. A free layer is provided on the lower conductive layer. On the free layer, layered in the following order are the non-magnetic layer, the fixed layer, the fixing layer, and the upper layer so as not to be placed immediately above the vertical bias layer. The non-magnetic layer, the fixed layer, the fixing layer, and the upper layer are buried in an insulation layer. Furthermore, an upper conductive layer is provided on the upper layer and the insulation layer. In the direction of the magnetic field applied by the vertical bias layer, the free layer is made greater in length than the fixed layer and the free layer is disposed in proximity to the vertical bias layer with the distance between the fixed layer and the vertical bias layer remaining unchanged.

Abstract: In a spin tunnel magnetoresistive effect film in which a magnetic thin film to which an exchange bias is applied by exchange coupling via an anti-ferromagnetic thin film and a magnetic thin film that detects a magnetic field are laminated, a magnetic thin film or an anti-ferromagnetic thin film (PtMn, PdMn, NiMn) is laminated onto an underlayer (Ta, Zr, Hf), the surface roughness thereof being in the range from 0.1 to 5 Angstroms. A means used to control the surface roughness introduces into the film growing chamber oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, or a gas mixture thereof into a vacuum of 10−6 Torr to 10−9 Torr, reduces the substrate temperature to 0° C. or lower during film growth, or oxidizes an underlayer. The lower electrode layer material used is a film laminate of a high-permeability amorphous magnetic material and a non-magnetic metallic layer.

Abstract: A magnetoresistive effect sensor uses a shielded-type magnetoresistive effect element using a magnetoresistive effect film formed by a basic configuration of a combination of a free layer, a barrier layer formed on the free layer, and a fixed layer formed on the barrier layer, wherein a sensing current flows substantially perpendicular to the magnetoresistive effect film, and wherein an amorphous material or a microcrystalline material is used in a lower shield.

Abstract: A magnetoresistive effect film has a lamination of an antiferromagnetic thin film, a magnetic thin film that is in contact with the antiferromagnetic thin film, a non-magnetic thin film that is in contact with the magnetic film, and another magnetic thin film that is in contact with the non-magnetic thin film. With a bias magnetic field of Hr on the antiferromagnetic thin film and a coercivity Hc2 of the other magnetic thin film, the condition Hc2<Hr is satisfied. The antiferromagnetic thin film is a laminate of a nickel oxide film and an iron oxide film having a thickness of 20 to 100 Å.

Abstract: A magnetoresistive effect film is formed by laminating a plurality of magnetic thin films onto a substrate with an intervening non-magnetic thin film, an antiferromagnetic thin film being provided so as to neighbor to one of the ferromagnetic thin film via this intervening non-magnetic thin film. With the bias magnetic field applied to the antiferromagnetic thin film being Hr and the coercivity of the other ferromagnetic thin film being Hc.sub.2, the condition Hc.sub.2 <Hr is satisfied. The antiferromagnetic thin film is made of either a cobalt oxide, a nickel oxide, or an a-phase ion oxide, or of an alloy of two or more of these materials, this being formed as a two-layer film.

Abstract: A magnetoresistive element generally includes consecutively an antiferromagnetic layer, a first ferromagnetic layer, a non-mangetic layer, and a second ferromagnetic layer. Instead of the non-magnetic layer, the magnetoresistive element may include a combination of a Co layer, a non-magnetic layer, and a Co layer. The antiferromagnetic layer is made of nickel oxide, a mixture of nickel oxide and cobalt oxide, or a laminate of nickel oxide and cobalt oxide. The ferromagnetic layer has a thickness of 1 to 10 nm, and the element has a height of 0.1 to 1 um. The non-magnetic layer has a thickness of 2 to 3 nm, and the antiferromagnetic layer has a thickness of 5 to 30 nm. The magnetoresistive element has an appropriate cross point, outputs an excellent reproduced signal, and has a desirable half-width with respect to the output signal.

Abstract: The invention relates to a magnetoresistance material, i.e. a conductive material that exhibits magnetoresistance, which is an inhomogeneous system consisting of a nonmagnetic matrix and ultrafine particles of a ferromagnetic material such as Co or Ni--Fe--Co dispersed in the nonmagnetic matrix. With the aim of reducing deterioration of the magnetoresistance effect, an alloy or mixture of at least two metal elements selected from Cu, Ag, Au and Pt is used as the material of the nonmagnetic matrix. Optionally, the nonmagnetic matrix may contain a limited quantity of a supplementary element selected from Al, Cr, In, Mn, Mo, Nb, Pd, Ta, Ti, W, V, Zr and Ir. A film of the magnetoresistance material can be formed on a substrate, and it is optional to interpose a buffer layer between the film and the substrate and/or cover the film with a protective layer.