Abstract: A magnetic disk for a hard disk drive comprising a plurality of physical sector sizes is disclosed. The magnetic disk includes a first sector size area physically formatted according to a first physical sector size and a second sector size area physically formatted according to a second physical sector size different from the first sector size by a multiple of the first sector size wherein the second sector size can be presented externally as multiple sectors of said first sector size.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention recite a method and system for fabricating a data storage medium. In one embodiment, a detectable pattern is created at the surface of a substrate. An electron beam lithography process is then initiated upon the substrate. The detectable pattern is used to control the positioning of an electron beam relative to the surface of the substrate during the electron beam lithography process.

Abstract: A method for repairing at least one defective servo segment of a servo sector having at least one defective servo track written on a magnetic recording media. The method comprises mapping the magnetic recording media for locations of the defective servo segment of the servo sector. A non-defective segment of the servo sector is replicated at least once on the magnetic recording media in a customer data zone, thereby creating at least one good servo segment copy of the servo sector. The good servo segment copy is propagated through the customer data zone associated with the defective servo segment. The good servo segment copy is copied onto the magnetic recording media previously occupied by the defective servo segment of the servo sector.

Abstract: A magnetic recording disk drive uses a disk having pre-patterned servo sectors extending generally radially across the data tracks. The servo sectors include at least two position error signal (PES) bursts or fields. The phases of the PES fields in the servo readback signal are demodulated to generate a PES to control the disk drive actuator for positioning the read/write heads. Each field contains generally radially directed magnetized stripes, with each stripe comprising a plurality of islands forming a zigzag pattern. The stripes have alternating polarity of magnetizations in the along-the-track direction.

Abstract: A patterned magnetic recording medium has discrete data islands arranged in spaced-apart tracks, with the tracks being arranged in multi-track groups or “hypertracks”. The islands have an equal island-spacing (IS) distance in the along-the-track direction and within each hypertrack the tracks are spaced-apart an equal track-spacing (TS) distance. If there are N tracks in a hypertrack then the islands in each track of a hypertrack are shifted in the along-the-track direction by 1/N times IS from the islands in adjacent tracks in the same hypertrack. The read and write heads have a lateral or cross-track width generally equal to the cross-track width of a hypertrack, so the read and write heads span all the individual tracks in a hypertrack. The hypertracks are spaced apart cross-track direction by a group-spacing (GS) distance, with GS being greater than TS. The islands in a hypertrack may be shifted in the along-the-track direction by approximately ½N times IS from the islands in adjacent hypertracks.

Abstract: A magnetic disk for a hard disk drive comprising a plurality of physical sector sizes is disclosed. The magnetic disk includes a first sector size area physically formatted according to a first physical sector size and a second sector size area physically formatted according to a second physical sector size different from the first sector size by a multiple of the first sector size wherein the second sector size can be presented externally as multiple sectors of said first sector size.

Abstract: A method for repairing at least one defective servo segment of a servo sector having at least one defective servo track written on a magnetic recording media. The method comprises mapping the magnetic recording media for locations of the defective servo segment of the servo sector. A non-defective segment of the servo sector is replicated at least once on the magnetic recording media in a customer data zone, thereby creating at least one good servo segment copy of the servo sector. The good servo segment copy is propagated through the customer data zone associated with the defective servo segment. The good servo segment copy is copied onto the magnetic recording media previously occupied by the defective servo segment of the servo sector.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention recite a method and system for fabricating a data storage medium. In one embodiment, a detectable pattern is created at the surface of a substrate. An electron beam lithography process is then initiated upon the substrate.

Abstract: Magnetic disk drive systems and associated methods are described for precisely detecting contact of read/write elements of a recording head with a magnetic disk due to increasing a heating power applied to heating elements in the recording head. Contact is detected based on adjusted timing signals which are generated by measuring the current applied to a spindle motor, and generating an estimated timing signal from the measured motor current for increments of the heating power. An actual servo timing signal is simultaneously measured from servo fields on the magnetic disk, and the adjusted timing signals are calculated based on the difference between the estimated timing signal and the servo timing signal. Multivariate statistical analysis may also be performed on the adjusted timing signals and other contact indicative variables (such as off-track and slider vertical bouncing) to generate a likelihood of contact at the increments of the heating power.

Abstract: A magnetic recording disk drive uses a disk having pre-patterned servo sectors extending generally radially across the data tracks. The servo sectors include at least two position error signal (PES) bursts or fields. The phases of the PES fields in the servo readback signal are demodulated to generate a PES to control the disk drive actuator for positioning the read/write heads. Each field contains generally radially directed magnetized stripes, with each stripe comprising a plurality of islands forming a zigzag pattern. The stripes have alternating polarity of magnetizations in the along-the-track direction.

Abstract: A patterned magnetic recording medium has discrete data islands arranged in spaced-apart tracks, with the tracks being arranged in multi-track groups or “hypertracks”. The islands have an equal island-spacing (IS) distance in the along-the-track direction and within each hypertrack the tracks are spaced-apart an equal track-spacing (TS) distance. If there are N tracks in a hypertrack then the islands in each track of a hypertrack are shifted in the along-the-track direction by 1/N times IS from the islands in adjacent tracks in the same hypertrack. The read and write heads have a lateral or cross-track width generally equal to the cross-track width of a hypertrack, so the read and write heads span all the individual tracks in a hypertrack. The hypertracks are spaced apart cross-track direction by a group-spacing (GS) distance, with GS being greater than TS. The islands in a hypertrack may be shifted in the along-the-track direction by approximately ½N times IS from the islands in adjacent hypertracks.

Abstract: During normal operation of a hard disk drive, control logic controls a plurality of switching elements to provide electrical power to a spindle motor and head motor of the disk drive from a voltage source coupled to first and second voltage supply nodes (e.g., Vcc and ground), the spindle motor has a set of motor windings to which the electric power is applied to rotate the spindle motor, and the control logic is configured to enter a regenerative braking state during normal operation where the switching elements are controlled to isolate the spindle motor from the first voltage supply node and cause regenerative braking of the spindle motor so that kinetic energy due to rotation of the spindle motor is converted to electrical power that is supplied to the head motor by virtue of inductance of one or more motor windings in the set.

Abstract: A magnetic recording disk drive uses a phase-quadrature position-error-signal (PES) pattern and a servo signal demodulator that is insensitive to clock errors and phase-misalignment errors. The disk has angularly-spaced servo sectors, with each servo sector having radially-spaced servo tracks that contain a phase-quadrature pattern of servo blocks. A first band in each servo sector contains two generally like patterns radially-spaced in the servo track with the second pattern phase-shifted 90 degrees along-the-track from the first pattern. A second band in each servo sector is spaced along-the-track from the first band and also has two patterns like those in the first band, but with the phase shift of the second pattern being in the opposite direction to the phase shift of the second pattern in the first band. The demodulator calculates the true amplitudes of the servo signal from the measured amplitudes of the servo signals from each band to thereby remove clock errors and phase-misalignment errors.

Abstract: An in-hub brushless permanent magnet DC motor has a radial working gap but uses coils wound in the axial direction of the motor. The coils generate fields that interact with the permanent magnet fields across the radial gap. The stator includes a plurality of angularly spaced stator teeth that have faces radially spaced across the gap from the permanent magnet. The stator teeth are connected to the base and extend axially into a cavity within the hub. The permanent magnet is a magnetically-segmented ring magnet located on an outer rim of the hub radially outwardly from the stator teeth. The magnetic flux from the permanent magnet is directed radially across the gap and into the stator teeth. Each stator tooth has an axially oriented post around which is wound a coil that generates an axial field. The axially-oriented part of each coil forms part of the magnetic circuit. The magnetic flux directed radially into each stator tooth is turned axially into the post and through the coil.

Abstract: An assembly is provided which has integrated suspension and actuator arm regions. At least one actuator coil layer is located in the actuator arm region. The actuator coil layer is mounted to at least one homogeneous support layer which extends between terminal ends of the assembly for supporting all layers. A hole is provided through all layers in the actuator region at a pivot point for receiving an actuator spindle. In some embodiments of the invention, a transducer coil layer may be integrated in the suspension region and may be located in substantially a common plane with the actuator coil layer. The actuator region may be provided with a silicon base which contains integrated processing circuits which are connected to the transducer coil layer. A device may be carried by the assembly for bending the suspension region with respect to the actuator arm region.

Abstract: An apparatus (and a method for producing the same) for preventing internal vibrations produced as a result of rotary motion at a predetermined frequency within a device mounted in an enclosure from being translated into resulting rotary motion of the device comprises n vibration isolation mounts located between the device and the enclosure, said vibration isolation mounts having stiffness characteristics and being positioned so that rotational motion of the device at the frequency of the rotary motion is eliminated. The vibration isolation mounts are arranged and configured so that when the rotary motion produces linear and rotational forces, the net moment of all forces about the center of gravity of the device is equal to zero. The vibration isolation mounts may be isotropic. The isolation mounts may have different stiffness's. Three or more mounts may be used. Alternatively, the vibration isolation mounts may have the same stiffness's but their positions may be varied.