Method of making a spin valve sensor of a read head with a triple antiparallel coupled free layer structure

A method of making a magnetic head assembly having a read head and a write head comprising the steps of:

• a forming of the write head comprising the steps of:
• forming ferromagnetic first and second pole piece layers with a yoke portion between a pole tip portion and a back gap portion;
• forming a nonmagnetic write gap layer between the pole tip portions of the first and second pole piece layers;
• forming an insulation stack with at least one coil layer embedded therein in the yoke portions of the first and second pole piece layers;
• and
• connecting the first and second pole piece layers at their back gaps portions;
• a forming of the read head comprising the steps of:
• forming nonmagnetic nonconductive first and second read gap layers;
• forming a dual spin valve sensor between the first and second read gap layers;
• forming a ferromagnetic first shield layer;
• and
• forming the first and second read gap layers between the first shield layer and the first pole piece layer;
• a making of the dual spin valve sensor comprising the steps of:
• forming first and second pinned layer structures wherein each pinned layer structure has a magnetic moment;
• forming antiferromagnetic first and second pinning layers exchange coupled to the first and second pinned layer structures for pinning the magnetic moment of the first and second pinned layers respectively;
• forming an antiparallel (AP) coupled free layer structure between the first and second pinned layer structures with a magnetic moment;
• and
• forming a nonmagnetic conductive first spacer layer between the first pinned layer structure and the AP coupled free layer structure and a nonmagnetic conductive second spacer layer between the second pinned layer structure and the AP coupled free layer structure;
• and
• a making of the AP coupled free layer structure including the steps of:
• forming ferromagnetic first, second and third antiparallel (AP) coupled free layers;
• and
• forming a first antiparallel (AP) coupling layer between the first and second AP coupled free layers and a second antiparallel (AP) coupling layer between the second and third AP free layers.