Magnetoresistive sensor having a hard-biasing material and a cubic-titanium-tungsten underlayer
US6278595A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 26, 1999 |
| Grant date | Aug 21, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 26, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11B5/3903
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The present invention is a magnetoresistive (MR) sensor that combines a hard-biasing material with an underlayer of cubic-titanium-tungsten to improve the stability of the MR sensor. The permanency of the hard-biasing material affects both the transverse and longitudinal biasing of the MR sensor, which in turn affects the stability of the MR sensor. The stability of the hard-biasing material is improved by combining it with an underlayer of cubic-titanium-tungsten. The underlayer enhances the hard-biasing material by improving the longitudinal magnetic anisotropy, the coercivity, and the in-plane squareness of the hard-biasing material. The combination of hard-biasing material and cubic-titanium-tungsten underlayer can be used in a variety of MR sensor embodiments, specifically an abutted junction or an overlaid structure. The method of making the abutted junction or overlaid structures is also improved by using cubic-titanium-tungsten as the underlayer of the hard-biasing material. The cubic-titanium-tungsten underlayer can be deposited at temperatures which are normal for the manufacturing of MR sensors, thus extra process steps are not needed. In addition, the process is more co…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.