Method of making a magnetoresistive read transducer having hard magnetic bias
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsMohamad T. Krounbi, Otto Voegeli, Po-Kang Wang
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A magnetoresistive (MR) read transducer having passive end regions separated by a central active region in which an MR layer is formed which extends over substantially only the central active region and in which a hard magnetic layer is formed in each end region. The hard magnetic layers form an abutting junction having electrical and magnetic continuity with the MR layer to produce a longitudinal bias in the MR sensor. The transducer is produced by a method in which the same stencil defines the extent of both the MR layer and the hard magnetic layers so that the abutting junctions are formed easily and reliably.
Claims11
A method for making a magnetoresistive read transducer having passive end regions separated by a central active region comprising the steps of:
- depositing a thin magnetoresistive layer of ferromagnetic material over at least the central active ion of said transducer;
- producing a stencil covering the central active region of said transducer;
- etching away the part of said magnetoresistive material not covered by said stencil to form the central active region of said transducer;
- depositing a film of hard magnetic material over regions of said transducer not covered by said stencil to produce the passive end regions of said transducer, said hard magnetic material in said end regions forming an abutting junction with one end of said layer of magnetoresistive material so that a longitudinal bias is produced in each of said passive end regions of said transducer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.