Thin-film magnetic head

A thin-film magnetic head comprising a substrate, a layer of magnetoresistive element deposited on said substrate at a temperature other than at room termperature and a conductor layer for supplying said magnetoresistive element with an electric current in the longitudinal direction thereof, wherein:

• said substrate comprises a single crystal material;
• at least two crystal axes of said substrate material are in parallel with the surface on which said layer of magnetoresistive element is deposited, the coefficient of thermal expansion of the substrate being different in the directions of said crystal axes;
• the orientations of said crystal axes and the coefficients of thermal expansion in said directions are in the relationship such that an internal stress is set up within said magnetoresistive element in parallel or perpendicular to said longitudinal direction of said element due to the difference between the temperature during the deposition of said element and room temperature;
• and
• the magnetostriction coefficient of said element is selected so that said set up stress has the effect of orienting the spins within said element in said longitudinal direction.