Method and system for measuring light delivery offsets in a heat assisted magnetic recording head

A method for aligning a laser diode on a laser substrate to a target waveguide for a heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) transducer on a slider, the target waveguide having an entrance on a back side of the slider and for directing light toward an air-bearing surface (ABS) opposite to the back side of the slider, the method comprising:

• energizing the laser;
• and
• monitoring a plurality of output devices, the plurality of output devices corresponding to a plurality of assistant cores on the slider, the plurality of assistant cores having a plurality of assistant core entrances at the back side and for directing energy from the laser from the plurality of entrances to the plurality of output devices;
• coarsely aligning the laser and the target waveguide such that the plurality of output devices have substantially the same power output;
• performing a fine alignment between the laser and the target waveguide.

A method for checking for alignment of a laser diode on a laser substrate to a target waveguide for a heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) transducer on a slider, the target waveguide having an entrance on a back side of the slider and for directing light toward an air-bearing surface (ABS) opposite to the back side of the slider, the method comprising:

• energizing the laser;
• monitoring a plurality of output devices, the plurality of output devices corresponding to a plurality of assistant cores on the slider, the plurality of assistant cores having a plurality of assistant core entrances at the back side and for directing energy from the laser from the plurality of entrances to the plurality of output devices;
• and
• determining a post-bond shift based on a power output of each of the plurality of output devices.