Abstract: An air bearing slider for supporting a transducer over a moving recording medium and a method for fabricating such an air bearing slider. The air bearing slider lifts off the recording medium with a predetermined take-off velocity when the recording medium begins to move. The air bearing slider has a first etched region that has a first etch depth and a second etched region that has a second etch depth. The etch depth ratio of the first etch depth to the second etch depth provides a pad-type air bearing slider with a take-off velocity ratio that is greater than or equal to 100%. The etch depth ratio of the first etch depth to the second etch depth provides a rail-type air bearing slider with a take-off velocity ratio that is greater than or equal to approximately 70%.

Abstract: An air bearing slider supports a transducer over a moving recording medium based on air flow generated by the movement of the recording medium. A first pad is formed near a leading edge of the slider and has a first leading edge contoured to provide a first effective length relative to the air flow for the first pad. A second pad is formed near a trailing edge of the slider and has a second leading edge contoured to provide a second effective length relative to the air flow for the second pad. A third pad is formed near the trailing edge of the slider and has a third leading edge which is contoured to provide a third effective length relative to the air flow for the third pad. The first, second, and third effective lengths vary as the air bearing slider moves relative to the moving recording medium to maintain a desired orientation and fly height for the slider during such movement.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for increasing recording density in zone bit recording on a magnetic recording disk without increasing track density by maximizing the data density the at disk's outer track. A magnetic recording head is attached to a parallelogram shaped slider such that the head's gap-to-radius skew and the slider rail skew changes continuously as the slider moves in an arcuate path from the disk's inner track to the disk's outer track. The parallelogram slider is designed to reduce the loss of data density at the outer track by minimizing the head's gap-to-radius skew while maximizing the rail skew angle at the outer track to maintain an essentially constant low fly height across the disk.