Thermally assisted magnetic head, magnetic head device and magnetic recording/reproducing apparatus including a recording element and a near-field light generating element

A thermally assisted magnetic head comprising a recording element and a near-field light generating element, wherein

• the recording element includes a main pole and a leading shield,
• the leading shield is located on a leading side of the main pole and located above a medium-facing surface and has a thickness of 0.05 μm to 0.25 μm as measured from the medium-facing surface,
• the near-field light generating element is located on the leading side of the main pole,
• the recording element includes a bit inversion starting region which is intended to be a maximum recording magnetic field generating position and formed at a leading edge of the main pole appearing on the medium-facing surface,
• the leading shield is magnetically connected to the main pole,
• the near-field light generating element is able to create a heating spot due to a near-field light on a near-field light generating end face appearing on the medium-facing surface, and
• the bit inversion starting region is located within one-half of a diameter of the heating spot from a center of the heating spot.