Method for making a magnetoresistive read head having a pinned layer width greater than the free layer stripe height
US7346977B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 3, 2005 |
| Grant date | Mar 25, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 13, 2026 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T29/49052
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method for making a magnetoresistive read head so that the pinned ferromagnetic layer is wider than the stripe height of the free ferromagnetic layer uses ion milling with the ion beam aligned at an angle to the substrate supporting the stack of layers making up the read head. The stack is patterned with photoresist to define a rectangular region with front and back long edges aligned parallel to the read head track width. After ion milling in two opposite directions orthogonal to the front and back long edges, the pinned layer width has an extension. The extension makes the width of the pinned layer greater than the stripe height of the free layer after the substrate and stack of layers are lapped. The length of the extension is determined by the angle between the substrate and the ion beam and the thickness of the photoresist.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.