Abstract: A method for forming micro-texture on an air bearing surface of a magnetic read/write slider, including: positioning sliders arranged in arrays on a tray, each slider having a pole tip facing upward; loading the tray into a processing chamber, which is then evacuated to a preset pressure; introducing a processing gas containing oxygen into the processing chamber; exposing the sliders to an etching means in the atmosphere of the processing gas to etch the surface of the slider so as to form a clear two-step structure thereon.

Abstract: To form a surface shape of an etching object in a short time at low cost, and to make the surface shape to be formed highly accurate. An apparatus for forming a surface shape includes a resist forming device for forming a resist of a predetermined shape on a predetermined surface of the etching object, and an etching device for performing etching to the predetermined surface of the etching object on which the resist is formed. The resist forming device includes a resist attaching device for attaching a resist material to a predetermined surface of the etching object, and a laser irradiating device for irradiating a laser beam to the attached resist material so as to remove a part thereof to a thereby shape it into a predetermined shape.

Abstract: It is to manufacture uniform and high-quality structural bodies which face no quality changes due to mechanical process. There is provided a surface forming apparatus that comprises a surface forming device for performing surface forming process to a prescribed structural body, wherein the surface forming device is an irradiation device that irradiates, to the structural body, an energy beam with a prescribed irradiation energy, which can be irradiated in a specific direction.

Abstract: To form a surface shape of an etching object in a short time at low cost, and to make the surface shape to be formed highly accurate. An apparatus for forming a surface shape includes a resist forming device for forming a resist of a predetermined shape on a predetermined surface of the etching object, and an etching device for performing etching to the predetermined surface of the etching object on which the resist is formed. The resist forming device includes a resist discharging device for forming a resist of a predetermined shape by discharging a resist material to the predetermined surface of the etching object.

Abstract: A slider of the invention includes a substrate, a head element formed on the substrate and a protecting film formed on at least one portion of one surface of the substrate facing a magnetic recording medium. The protecting film comprises a base film, first DLC (diamond like carbon) film adjacent the substrate and a second DLC film. The carbon film density of said first DLC film is less than 3.1 (g/cm3) and the carbon film density of said second DLC film is more than 3.1 (g/cm3).

Abstract: A manufacturing method of a thin-film magnetic head included a step of cutting a wafer on which a large number of thin-film magnetic head elements are formed into rowbars each of which has a plurality of aligned thin-film magnetic head elements, a step of cleaning, by an ion beam etching method, a surface of each of the cut rowbars, which is to be opposed to a magnetic recording medium, a step of depositing a protection film on the cleaned surface of the rowbar, and a step of separating thereafter the rowbar into individual thin-film magnetic heads.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a magnetic head manufactures a magnetic head having a base, and a laminate stacked on the base and including a magneto-resistive device. The method mechanically polishes a surface of a structure including the base and the laminate close to a magnetic recording medium, wherein the surface of the structure includes an end face of the laminate including an end face of the magneto-resistive device and a surface of the base. Next, the method selectively etches a first region on the surface of the structure close to the magnetic recording medium, wherein the first region includes the surface of the base but does not include the end face of the magneto-resistive device. Subsequently, the method entirely etches the surface of the structure close to the magnetic recording medium.

Abstract: The present invention provides a metal thin film type magnetic recording medium having improved tracking stability and friction stability, by improving the lubricating layer in consideration of the state of forming the lubricating layer in view of the distribution of the lubricant. The magnetic recording medium according to the present invention at least has, in turn, a metal magnetic layer, a protective layer and a lubricating layer on one surface of a nonmagnetic base. The covering ratio of a surface of the lubricating layer with the lubricant is 65-75%. The lubricating layer is produced by applying a mixture of solvents containing at least three solvents selected from three groups, that is from at least one from group (1): ketone solvents having a boiling point of 40-130° C.

Abstract: The present invention provides a metal thin film type magnetic recording medium having improved tracking stability and friction stability, by improving the lubricating layer in consideration of the state of forming the lubricating layer in view of the distribution of the lubricant.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a magnetic head manufactures a magnetic head having a base, and a laminate stacked on the base and including a magneto-resistive device. The method mechanically polishes a surface of a structure including the base and the laminate close to a magnetic recording medium, wherein the surface of the structure includes an end face of the laminate including an end face of the magneto-resistive device and a surface of the base. Next, the method selectively etches a first region on the surface of the structure close to the magnetic recording medium, wherein the first region includes the surface of the base but does not include the end face of the magneto-resistive device. Subsequently, the method entirely etches the surface of the structure close to the magnetic recording medium.

Abstract: As a protective film of an element and a slider in a magnetic head, a film is provided which is excellent in adhesiveness to a film forming surface and which shows sufficient corrosion-resistance property with a thinner thickness. To provided this film, according to the present invention, a DLC film as a protective film is formed onto an element portion end surface and a surface of a slider of a magnetic head core. A film deposition step is conducted plural times to obtain the DLC film with a predetermined thickness when the DLC film is formed using an electric discharge.

Abstract: According to the present invention, a reproducing head having an MR film is formed on a substrate (step S102) and a recording head is formed (step S103). The MR film is formed by sequentially forming an antiferromagnetic layer, a first ferromagnetic layer, a tunnel barrier layer, and a second ferromagnetic layer. Subsequently, the end face perpendicular to an extending surface of the MR film is subjected to mechanical polishing to adjust the element height (step S105). The mechanically polished face is subjected to wet etching to remove residues of the mechanical polishing (step S106). Consequently, an electric short circuit in a tunnel barrier layer caused by residues at the time of polishing can be prevented, damage to the tunnel barrier layer and the recording head caused by the etching can be reduced, and a step in the substrate, the reproducing head, and the recording head can be made smaller as compared with the case of dry etching.

Abstract: A magnetic recording (vapor deposition) film medium having improved friction characteristics, running durability, and still characteristics are provided.

Abstract: The present invention manifests a highly excellent effect of allowing the plasma polymerization film to be formed stably for a long time while very rarely suffering occurrence of abnormal discharge during the formation of the plasma polymerization film and promoting the improvement of the yield of products because it adopts as the electrode for implementing plasma polymerization that of the electrodes which is located on the side confronting a surface on which the plasma polymerization film is formed, coats this electrode with a polymer material at a covering ratio in the range of 50-100%, and effects the formation of the plasma polymerization film on an elongate substrate under the operating pressure in the range of 10.sup.-3 -1 Torr. Further, the properties of the plasma polymerization film also become highly excellent.

Abstract: A magnetic recording medium possessing excellent electromagnetic characteristics, corrosion resistance, durability, abrasion resistance and lubricity, has an undercoat layer, a ferromagnetic metal layer, a protective layer and a lubricating layer formed in this order on a non-magnetic substrate, or has an undercoat layer, a ferromagnetic metal layer, an intercepting layer, a protective layer and a lubricating layer formed in this order on a non-magnetic substrate, wherein the protective layer is a plasma-polymerized hydrogen-containing carbon film having a refractive index of 1.90 or more and a contact angle of less than 80 degrees, the film thickness of the protective layer or the total film thickness of the protective layer and the intercepting layer is 30 to 150 .ANG., the undercoat layer, as well as the intercepting layer, is a film formed of silicon oxide represented by SiOx (x=1.8-1.

Abstract: The present invention improves the adhesive property by pretreating under uniform conditions the substrate surface of metal, ceramics or glass etc. with a poor adhesive property, by accelerating ions under an electric field to the substrate in advance of a diamond-like film forming process. In light of the fact that a diamond-like film forming process by ionized deposition uses thermal electron ionization means and an electric potential is applied to a grid to accelerate ionized hydrocarbon ions, the present invention could attain the aimed purpose by ionizing and then accelerating a bombardment gas such as argon as a pretreatment process in the same apparatus.

Abstract: The problem of rusting relating to a magnetic recording medium composed of a non-magnetic base and a magnetic recording layer of a ferromagnetic metal layer formed thereon is overcome by a magnetic recording medium comprising a non-magnetic support, a ferromagnetic metal thin film as a magnetic recording layer and a lubricating layer, wherein the lubricating layer contains a mixture of a first lubricant having a polar perfluoro radial and a second lubricant expressed by the following formula: ##STR1## where R is a divalent radical having 2 or fewer carbons atoms;D is a polar radical selected from phosphorus-containing radical, hydroxyl, carboxyl and esterified carboxyl;R.sup.1 is selected from F, CF.sub.3 and C.sub.2 F.sub.5 ; andR.sup.2 and R.sub.3 are selected from F, CF.sub.3 and C.sub.2 F.sub.5, CF(CF.sub.3).sub.2 and C(CF.sub.3).sub.3.

Abstract: A magnetic recording medium having a magnetic layer in the form of a ferromagnetic metal thin film includes an undercoat film disposed between the magnetic layer and the substrate and a topcoat film on the magnetic layer. Each of the undercoat and topcoat films is a plasma polymerized film containing silicon, the Si content in the film being 30 to 50 at %. Corrosion resistance and durability are significantly improved.

Abstract: A protectively coated sliding member comprises a sliding member body, an anchor layer formed thereon and which consists of (a) a hydrocarbon or hydrocarbon-based plasma polymer film, (b) a diamond-like film, or (c) an ion-plating film of a metal or metallic compound, and a protective coating formed on the anchor layer and which consists of a hydrocarbon or hydrocarbon-based plasma polymer film in case where the anchor layer consists of (a), a diamond or diamond-like film in case of (b), or an ion-plating film of a metallic compound in case of (c). The protective coating is of greater hardness than the anchor layer.

Abstract: A diamond-like thin film formed on a substrate, with the peripheral region tapered toward the edge, satisfying the dimensional relation100<b/a<10,000where a is the thickness of the film portion where the slope starts and b is the length of the slope. An apparatus for producing the film comprises a source for feeding a low-molecular-weight hydrocarbon or a feed gas capable of affording a low-molecular-weight hydrocarbon upon decompositon or reaction, means for ionizing the gas, a substrate held opposite to the ionizing means, and a mask member located between the ionizing means and the substrate. The apparatus and process using the apparatus are characterized in that the distance between the mask member and the substrate is fixed so as to obtain a diamond-like thin film satisfying the above-mentioned dimensional relation.