Perpendicular-magnetic-recording head with leading-edge taper of a planarized stepped-pole layer having greater recess distance than a flare-point of a main-pole layer

A hard-disk drive incorporating a perpendicular-magnetic-recording head with leading-edge taper of a planarized stepped-pole layer having greater recess distance than a flare point of a main-pole layer, said hard-disk drive comprising:

• a perpendicular-magnetic-recording disk rotatably mounted on a spindle;
• an arm;
• and
• a slider attached to said arm, said slider comprising:
• a perpendicular-magnetic-recording head for writing data to and reading data from said perpendicular-magnetic-recording disk;
• and
• a load beam attached at a gimbal portion of said load beam to said perpendicular-magnetic-recording head, said slider including said perpendicular-magnetic-recording head integrally attached at a trailing-edge portion of said slider;
• wherein said perpendicular-magnetic-recording head comprises:
• a write element comprising:
• said main-pole layer having said flare point, said flare point recessed a first distance from a pole tip of said main-pole layer at an air-bearing surface below said air-bearing surface;
• and
• said stepped-pole layer magnetically coupled with said main-pole layer across an interface between said main-pole layer and said stepped-pole layer, said stepped-pole layer having said leading-edge taper, said leading-edge taper recessed a second distance from said pole tip of said main-pole layer at an air-bearing surface below said air-bearing surface;
• wherein said second distance of said leading-edge taper is greater than said first distance of said flare point;
• and
• wherein a surface of said stepped-pole layer is planarized so that said interface between said main-pole layer and said stepped-pole layer is substantially flat over said leading-edge taper.

A method for fabricating a perpendicular-magnetic-recording head with leading-edge taper of a planarized stepped-pole layer having greater recess distance than a flare point of a main-pole layer, said method comprising:

• depositing a non-magnetic taper-forming layer;
• fabricating a taper-forming portion in said non-magnetic taper-forming layer, said taper-forming portion configured to recess a leading-edge taper of a stepped-pole layer by a second distance greater than a first distance of a flare point of a main-pole layer below an air-bearing surface;
• depositing a stepped-pole layer to form a leading-edge taper in said stepped-pole layer over said taper-forming portion of said taper-forming layer;
• depositing on said stepped-pole layer a sacrificial layer;
• applying a chemical-mechanical polishing process to reduce a thickness of said sacrificial layer to a uniform thickness over said non-magnetic taper-forming layer and said stepped-pole layer;
• applying a reactive-ion-milling process to define a surface of said stepped-pole layer to serve as an interface between said main-pole layer and said stepped-pole layer;
• and
• planarizing said surface of said stepped-pole layer so that said interface between said main-pole layer and said stepped-pole layer is substantially flat over said leading-edge taper of said stepped-pole layer.