Heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write head with improved corrosion resistance and method for making the head
US11127421B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 8, 2021 |
| Grant date | Sep 21, 2021 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 8, 2041 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11B2005/0024
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write head has a write pole with a chemically-passivated end that substantially prevents oxidation and thus improves corrosion resistance of the write pole. The write pole and near-field transducer (NFT) are supported on a slider and have their ends in a window region of the slider's disk-facing surface. The outer surface region of the write pole is chemically-passivated, preferably by exposure to a nitrogen plasma. The nitrogen plasma has no effect on the NFT end or on the magnetoresistive read head, which is protected because it is located in a non-window region of the slider's disk-facing surface. An optically transparent protective film is formed in the window over the passivated write pole end and NFT end.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.