Spin valve thin film magnetic element and thin film magnetic head

Abstract

The present invention provides a spin valve thin film magnetic element including a laminate in which an antiferromagnetic layer, a pinned magnetic layer provided in contact with the antiferromagnetic layer so that the magnetization direction is pinned by an exchange coupling magnetic field with the antiferromagnetic layer, a nonmagnetic conductive layer provided in contact with the pinned magnetic layer, a second free magnetic layer provided in contact with the nonmagnetic conductive layer, a nonmagnetic intermediate layer provided in contact with the second free magnetic layer, a first free magnetic layer provided in contact with the nonmagnetic intermediate layer and antiferromagnetically coupled with the second free magnetic layer to form a ferrimagnetic state together with the second free magnetic layer, and a backed layer provided in contact with the first free magnetic layer and having higher conductivity than the first free magnetic layer are laminated. The present invention also provides a magnetic head using the spin valve thin film magnetic element.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.