Top spin valve heads for ultra-high recording density
AssigneeHeadway Technologies, Inc.
InventorsCheng Horng, Ru-Ying Tong, Min Li
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for fabricating a specularly reflecting top spin valve read head with an ultra-thin free layer that is capable of reading ultra-high density recordings. Said top spin valve has a composite CoFe—NiFe free layer that is formed on a composite Ru—Cu buffer layer which provides lattice-matching to the free layer as well as enhanced specular reflection. The free layer is pinned by a synthetic antiferromagnetic pinning layer. The resulting fabrication has a conducing lead layer formed over it that defines the sensor trackwidth and a magnetic bias layer formed outside of the conducting lead layer.
Claims38
A method for fabricating a specularly reflecting top spin valve read head with ultra-thin free layer for ultra-high recording densities comprising:
- providing an Al2O3 substrate;
- forming over said Al2O3 substrate an NiCr seed layer;
- forming over said NiCr seed layer a buffer layer of lattice-matching and specular reflection enhancing material;
- forming over said buffer layer a laminated layer of ferromagnetic material which will function as a magnetically free layer;
- forming over said laminated ferromagnetic free layer a spacer layer of non-magnetic material;
- forming over said spacer layer a laminated, synthetic antiferromagnetic pinned layer;
- forming over said laminated, synthetic antiferromagnetic pinned layer an antiferromagnetic pinning layer;
- forming over said pinning layer a capping layer;
- forming, on either side of said sensor fabrication, a hard magnetic longitudinal bias layer;
- forming on each of said hard magnetic longitudinal biasing layers a conducting lead overlay extending symmetrically beyond each of said hard magnetic biasing layers and over said read head capping layer to define, thereby, a read head trackwidth.
A specularly reflecting top spin valve read head with ultra-thin free layer for ultra-high recording densities comprising:
- an Al2O3 substrate;
- an NiCr seed layer;
- a buffer layer of lattice-matching, specular reflection enhancing material;
- a composite layer of ferromagnetic material which functions as a magnetically free layer formed over said buffer layer;
- a spacer layer of non-magnetic material formed over said composite magnetically free layer of ferromagnetic material;
- a laminated synthetic antiferromagnetic pinned layer formed over said spacer layer;
- an antiferromagnetic pinning layer formed over said laminated pinned layer;
- a capping layer formed over said pinning layer;
- a hard magnetic longitudinal bias layer formed on either side of said sensor fabrication;
- a conducting lead overlay formed on each of said hard magnetic longitudinal biasing layers extending symmetrically beyond each of said hard magnetic biasing layers and over said read head capping layer to define, thereby, a read head trackwidth.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.