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AssigneeHitachi, Ltd.
InventorsRyoichi Nakatani, Masahiro Kitada, Naoki Koyama, Isamu Yuito, Hisashi Takano, Eijin Moriwaki, Mikio Suzuki, Masaaki Futamoto, Fumio Kugiya, Yoshibumi Matsuda, Kazuo Shiiki, Yoshinori Miyamura, Kyo Akagi, Takeshi Nakao, Hirotsugu Fukuoka, Takayuki Munemoto, Tokuho Takagaki, Toshio Kobayashi, Hideo Tanabe, Noboru Shimizu
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The magnetoresistance effect element is of a multilayered structure having at least magnetic layers and an intermediate layer of an insulating material, a semiconductor or an antiferromagnetic material against the magnetic layers, and the magneto-resistance effect element has terminals formed at least on the opposite magnetic layers, respectively, so that a current flows in the intermediate layer. The film surfaces of all the magnetic layers constituting the magnetoresistance effect element are opposed substantially at right angles to the recording surface of a magnetic recording medium. Therefore, the area of the magnetic layers facing the recording surface of the magnetic recording medium can be extremely reduced, and thus the magnetic field from a very narrow region of the high-density recorded magnetic recording medium can be detected by the current which has a tunneling characteristic and passes through the intermediate layer.
A multilayered magnetoresistance effect element, comprising:
A magnetic head formed of a multilayered magnetoresistance effect element for reading information from a magnetic recording medium, said magnetoresistance effect element comprising:
A magnetic storage apparatus including a multilayered magnetoresistance effect element, said magnetoresistance effect element having first and second magnetic layers and an intermediate layer, including one of a group consisting of an insulating material, a semiconductor and an antiferromagnetic material, between said magnetic layers to form a magnetoresistance effect multilayered structure, and a first and a second electrode respectively disposed on the first and second magnetic layers of the magnetoresistance effect multilayered structure, for detecting a variation of an external magnetic field by sensing change of a voltage between the first and second electrodes via the magnetoresistance effect multilayered structure to detect an electrical resistance variation in the multilayered structure caused by electron spin-dependent scattering at layer-layer interfaces in the multilayered structure due to the external magnetic field variation, the first and second electrodes and the multilayered structure being arranged so that all current flows across the first magnetic layer-intermediate layer and second magnetic layer-intermediate layer interfaces, and in said intermediate layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.