Thermally-assisted perpendicular magnetic recording system and head

A thermally-assisted perpendicular magnetic recording head for recording data in tracks of a disk having a perpendicular magnetic recording layer, the head comprising:

• an air-bearing slider having an air-bearing surface as the recording-layer-facing surface and a trailing surface;
• a write pole on the trailing surface for directing magnetic flux generally perpendicular to the recording layer, the write pole having a pole tip substantially at the recording-layer-facing surface, the write pole tip having a width substantially corresponding to the track width;
• a shield of ferromagnetic material on the trailing surface and having ends substantially at the recording-layer-facing surface, the shield substantially surrounding the write pole tip and substantially confining the magnetic flux from the write pole tip to the track width, the shield including a trailing shield spaced down-track from the write pole tip and side shields located on opposite sides of the write pole tip and snaced cross-track from the write pole tip;
• a return pole on the trailing surface and having an end substantially at the recording-layer-facing surface, the return pole being magnetically coupled to the write pole for providing a return path for magnetic flux from the recording layer;
• and
• a resistive heater layer of electrically conducting material on the trailing surface between the write pole tip and the return pole for heating the recording layer in the presence of magnetic flux from the write pole, the heater layer having an edge substantially at the recording-layer-facing surface and wider than the write pole tip width;
• whereby regions of the recording layer wider than the track are heated, but thermally-assisted magnetic recording occurs only in the track.

A thermally-assisted perpendicular magnetic recording disk drive comprising:

• a perpendicular magnetic recording disk comprising a substrate, a magnetically-permeable underlayer on the substrate, and a magnetic recording layer on the underlayer, the recording layer storing recorded data in tracks and having perpendicular magnetic anisotropy;
• an air-bearing slider maintained near the surface of the disk and having an air-bearing surface as the recording-layer-facing surface and a trailing surface;
• a write pole on the slider trailing surface for directing magnetic flux generally perpendicular to the recording layer, the write pole having a pole tip substantially at the slider recording-layer-facing surface, the write pole tip having a width substantially defining the width of a data track when the disk is moved relative to the slider;
• a shield of ferromagnetic material on the trailing surface and having ends substantially at the recording-layer-facing surface, the shield substantially surrounding the write pole tip and substantially confining the magnetic flux from the write pole tip to the data track width, the shield including a trailing shield spaced down-track from the write pole tip and side shields located on opposite sides of the write pole tip and spaced cross-track from the write pole tip;
• a return pole on the trailing surface and having an end substantially at the recording-layer-facing surface, the return pole being magnetically coupled to the write pole for providing a return path for magnetic flux from the write pole tip through the recording layer and underlayer,
• an electrically conductive coil between the write pole and the return pole for generating magnetic flux in the write pole when electrical current is passed through the coil;
• a resistive heater layer of electrically conducting material on the trailing surface between the write pole tip and the return pole for heating the recording layer in the presence of magnetic flux from the write pole, the heater layer having an edge substantially at the recording-layer-facing surface and wider than the write pole tip width, whereby regions of the recording layer wider than the data track are heated but thermally-assisted magnetic recording occurs only in the data track;
• and
• a magnetoresistive read head on the slider trailing surface for reading data recorded in the data tracks.