JP2000036109A - Thin film magnetic recording head and its manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide the thin film magnetic recording head, as well as its manufacture, that can suppress increase in the width of the recording magnetic field against that of a second magnetic pole without deterioration of the recording characteristics, that can improve the manufacturing yield and productivity, and that can enhance the freedom of design for the width and arrangement of the second magnetic pole. SOLUTION: This is a thin film magnetic recording head that performs magnetic recording on a magnetic medium by leakage flux from a recording gap layer 13 provided between a first and second magnetic poles 10, 14. In this case, the width in the track direction of the opposing surface of the magnetic medium in the first magnetic pole 10 is wider than the width in the track direction of that of the second magnetic pole 14; a projected magnetic pole part 11 having a function as a magnetic pole is formed on the surface oppositely facing the second magnetic pole 14 side of the first magnetic pole 10; a nonmagnetic part 12 for flattening the projected magnetic pole part 11 is formed on the first magnetic pole 10; and a wide flattened recording gap layer 13 is formed between the surface, flattened by the nonmagnetic part 12 and the projected magnetic pole part 11, and the second magnetic pole 14.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thin film magnetic recording head for magnetically recording on a magnetic medium and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly, it is possible to suppress an increase in the width of a recording magnetic field with respect to a second magnetic pole width. The present invention relates to a thin-film magnetic recording head and a method for manufacturing the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recent computer performance improvement,
With the development of software, the recording density of hard disk drives has been rapidly increasing, and since 1990, has been increasing at an annual rate of approximately 60%.

In order to improve the recording density of a hard disk drive, it is necessary to reduce the track width of a magnetic head that magnetically records data on a disk medium of the disk drive to increase the recording track density. In order to increase the recording density, it is equally important to increase the recording bit density.
To improve the recording bit density, the coercive force H
Although it is necessary to increase c, writing to a high Hc recording medium requires a recording head with high recording capability. Further, a combined MR / inductive magnetic head combined with a magnetoresistive (MR) reproducing head capable of efficiently detecting a signal from a minute recording bit has been used for high-density recording.

FIG. 8 shows an MR / MR fabricated by a thin film process.
FIG. 3 is a side sectional view showing an internal structure of the inductive composite magnetic head. As shown in FIG. 8, the MR / inductive combined magnetic head comprises a substrate 25 of an insulating substrate serving as a slider, a lower shield layer 23 for a reproducing MR head formed on the substrate 25, and a lower shield layer 23 thereof. A read gap insulating layer formed thereon, an MR magneto-sensitive element provided on the medium facing surface side of the read gap insulating layer and detecting a signal magnetic field from a recording medium, and provided on the read gap insulating layer; The first magnetic pole 10 is provided. The first magnetic pole 10 also serves as a magnetic shield for improving the reproducing resolution of the reproducing MR head and as a leading-side recording magnetic pole of the recording head.

[0005] The MR / inductive hybrid type magnetic head also includes a recording gap insulating layer 13 formed on the first magnetic pole 10 and defining a gap of the recording head, and an excitation layer of the recording head formed on the recording gap layer 13. The first step eliminating layer 19 serving as an insulating base for the exciting coil 21 and the exciting coil 2
2, a second step eliminating layer 20 for eliminating irregularities, a second magnetic pole 14 formed on the second step eliminating layer 20 and the recording gap layer 13, and a protective layer 15 formed on the second magnetic pole 14.
And

The end of the first step eliminating layer 19 on the side facing the magnetic medium defines the gap depth of the recording head. In order to enhance the recording performance during high-density recording, it is necessary to reduce the gap depth to about 1 μm or less.

FIG. 9 is a front view of the combined MR / inductive magnetic head as viewed from the surface facing the magnetic medium.
In FIG. 9, the recording track width is approximately the second magnetic pole 1
4, the width of the first magnetic pole 10 is larger than the width of the second magnetic pole 14.
4, the width of the recording magnetic field leaking to the recording gap layer 13 is larger than the width of the second magnetic pole 14. As a result, the magnetization width in the track width direction recorded on the magnetic medium is increased, which is an obstacle to the reduction of the track width when performing high-density recording.

Therefore, various techniques have been conventionally proposed to prevent such a failure. For example, JP-A-7-262519 (hereinafter referred to as Conventional Example 1)
As shown in FIG. 10, a convex magnetic pole portion 11 having a function as a magnetic pole is formed on a surface of the first magnetic pole 10 facing the second magnetic pole 14, and the convex magnetic pole portion 11 has a track width direction. A structure that suppresses an increase in the width of the recording magnetic field with respect to the width of the second magnetic pole by disposing the side surface that defines the width in accordance with the side surface that defines the width of the second magnetic pole in the track width direction is disclosed. Have been. In Conventional Example 1, FIG.
The convex magnetic pole portion 11 is formed by etching the recording gap layer 13 and the first magnetic pole 10 with an ion beam using the second magnetic pole 14 as a mask to form the shape shown in FIG.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-225917 (hereinafter referred to as Conventional Example 2) discloses a first type as shown in FIG.
And a convex magnetic pole part 11a having the same side surface as the convex magnetic pole part 11 on the magnetic pole 10 and magnetically coupled to the second magnetic pole 14, and a convex magnetic pole part 11 on the first magnetic pole 10 It is formed all at once by ion beam etching using a photomask that determines the width, and furthermore, the convex magnetic pole portion 11 and the recording gap layer 1 are formed.
3 and the step formed by the convex magnetic pole portion 14a
A method of forming the second magnetic pole 14 after embedding and polishing and flattening is disclosed.

[0010]

The prior art has the following problems.

(1) In Conventional Example 1, the thickness of the second magnetic pole 14 is reduced during ion beam etching, and as a result,
There is a problem that the recording characteristics deteriorate. In order to solve this, the second magnetic pole 14 is formed by ion beam etching.
A method of forming the second magnetic pole 14 thicker has been proposed in consideration of the thickness reduction of the second magnetic pole 14. However, the second pole 1
4 and the narrowing of the width of the second magnetic pole 14 are contradictory. Therefore, according to the method disclosed in Conventional Example 1, the magnetization width in the track width direction recorded on the magnetic medium is reduced. The limit to making it smaller was 2 μm.

(2) In Conventional Example 2, similarly to Conventional Example 1,
If the width of the convex magnetic pole portion in the track width direction is reduced to perform etching with an ion beam, the photomask itself becomes narrower, so that the mask shape becomes unstable due to damage by the ion beam and the manufacturing yield is reduced. There is a problem of lowering. In addition, this method needs to introduce a polishing technique, and includes many problems to be solved, such as a problem of polishing powder remaining due to polishing and a problem of alignment of a photomask after polishing, and is not an easy method.

(3) In the conventional examples 1 and 2, it is necessary to etch an insulating film such as an alumina film having a low etching rate in addition to the metal magnetic film, so that a long manufacturing time is required.

(4) In Conventional Examples 1 and 2, the width of the recording gap layer 13 is formed to be as narrow as the width of the convex magnetic pole portion 11, so that the second magnetic pole formed on the recording gap layer 13 is formed. 14 are limited in width and arrangement.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and can suppress an increase in the width of the recording magnetic field with respect to the width of the second magnetic pole without deteriorating the recording characteristics. And improve productivity, and
It is an object of the present invention to provide a thin-film magnetic recording head capable of increasing the degree of freedom in designing the width and arrangement of the magnetic poles and a method for manufacturing the same.

[0016]

A thin-film magnetic recording head according to the present invention performs magnetic recording on a magnetic medium by magnetic flux leakage from a recording gap layer provided between a first magnetic pole and a second magnetic pole. A thin-film magnetic recording head, wherein a width of a first magnetic pole in a track direction of a magnetic medium facing surface is wider than a width of a second magnetic pole in a track direction of a magnetic medium facing surface, and A convex magnetic pole portion having a function as a magnetic pole is formed on a surface facing the magnetic pole side, a non-magnetic portion for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion is formed on the first magnetic pole, and the non-magnetic portion and the convex magnetic pole portion flatten. The recording gap layer is formed on the formed surface.

The non-magnetic part is made of, for example, an inorganic substance,
It is preferably made of alumina.

The side surface defining the track width of the convex magnetic pole portion on the medium facing surface may be arranged at substantially the same position as the side surface defining the track width of the second magnetic pole on the medium facing surface.

The side surface defining the track width of the convex magnetic pole portion on the medium facing surface may be located at a position inside the side surface defining the track width of the second magnetic pole on the medium facing surface.

The side surface defining the track width of the second magnetic pole on the medium facing surface is displaced in one of the left and right directions with respect to the side surface defining the track width of the convex magnetic pole portion on the medium facing surface. You may. The method of the present invention is a method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic recording head for performing magnetic recording on a magnetic medium by magnetic flux leakage from a recording gap layer provided between a first magnetic pole and a second magnetic pole. Forming a convex magnetic pole portion having a function as a magnetic pole on the first magnetic pole, forming a non-magnetic portion on the first magnetic pole to flatten the convex magnetic pole portion, and flattening the non-magnetic portion and the convex magnetic pole portion Forming a recording gap layer on the converted surface, and forming a second magnetic pole on the recording gap layer.

According to the present invention, by forming a convex magnetic pole portion having a function as a magnetic pole on a surface of the first magnetic pole facing the second magnetic pole, the width of the recording magnetic field with respect to the width of the second magnetic pole is reduced. The increase can be suppressed. Further, a non-magnetic portion for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion is formed on the first magnetic pole, and a recording gap layer is formed on the surface flattened by the non-magnetic portion and the convex magnetic pole portion. It can be manufactured without ion beam etching. Further, since the recording gap layer can be formed to be wide, the degree of freedom in designing the width and arrangement of the second magnetic pole formed on the recording gap layer can be increased.

[0022]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view of a thin-film magnetic recording head according to a first embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the medium facing surface side, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA ′ of FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line BB ′ of FIG. In the thin-film magnetic recording head according to the first embodiment, the width of the first magnetic pole 10 in the track direction on the surface facing the magnetic medium is wider than the width of the second magnetic pole 14 in the track direction on the surface facing the magnetic medium. First magnetic pole 10
A convex magnetic pole portion 11 having a function as a magnetic pole is formed on a surface facing the second magnetic pole 14 side, and a non-magnetic portion 12 for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion 11 is formed on the first magnetic pole 10.
Formed on both sides of the non-magnetic portion 12 and the convex magnetic pole portion 11
Thus, a flattened wide recording gap layer 13 is formed between the flattened surface and the second magnetic pole 14.

The side surface of the convex magnetic pole portion 11 defining the track width on the medium facing surface is arranged at substantially the same position as the side surface defining the track width of the second magnetic pole 14 on the medium facing surface.

In the case of a composite head with an MR reproducing head, the first magnetic pole 10, which is also used as a magnetic shield on the MR reproducing head side, is made of NiF having a thickness of 1 to 3 μm.
e film. The convex magnetic pole portion 11 is made of a NiFe film having a thickness of 0.2 to 2 μm. The nonmagnetic portion 12 is made of, for example, an inorganic film, and is preferably made of an alumina film.

As shown in FIG. 3, the non-magnetic portion 12 extends from the medium facing surface to the far side until it reaches the convex magnetic pole portion 11. The recording gap layer 13 is made of an alumina film having a thickness of 0.1 to 0.3 μm. On the recording gap layer 13, an exciting coil 21 insulated by a first step eliminating layer 19 made of photoresist and a second step eliminating layer 20 made of photoresist is provided.

The second magnetic pole 14 is made of a NiFe film and has a thickness of 2 to 5 μm on the medium facing surface. The above elements are covered with a protective layer 15 made of an alumina film.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are explanatory views showing a method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic recording head according to the present invention in the order of steps. First, the first magnetic pole 10 is formed (see FIG. 4A). The first magnetic pole 10 can be formed by a method of forming a NiFe film pattern by a frame plating method, or a method of performing an ion beam etching after forming an amorphous CoTaZr film or a NiFe film by a vapor phase growth method such as a sputtering method. is there.

Next, a photoresist mask 17 is provided on the first magnetic pole 10, and the convex magnetic pole portion 11 is formed by ion beam etching using the photoresist mask 17 (see FIG. 4B).

Next, while the photoresist mask 17 is left, a non-magnetic portion 12 such as an alumina film for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion 11 is vapor-phase grown by sputtering or the like (FIG. 4).
(C)).

Next, the photoresist mask 17 is removed (see FIG. 4D), and an alumina film serving as the recording gap layer 13 is formed on the surface flattened by the nonmagnetic portion 12 and the convex magnetic pole portion 11 by a sputtering method. (See FIG. 4E).

Next, the first step eliminating layer 19 made of photoresist and the second step eliminating layer 2 made of photoresist are used.
0 forms the exciting coil 21 which is insulated by the zero.

Next, a NiFe film or a CoFeNi film pattern is formed by plating using a resist frame 18, and the second magnetic pole 14 is formed (see FIG. 5A).

Next, after removing the resist frame 18 (see FIG. 5B), the protective layer 15 made of an alumina film is formed.
Is formed by the bias sputtering method (see FIG. 5C).

After the above steps are completed, the wafer is cut, the medium facing surface of the element is exposed and polished, and the gap depth of the recording head is determined. Thereby, the thin-film magnetic recording head of the present invention can be obtained.

According to the present invention, by forming the convex magnetic pole portion 11 having a function as a magnetic pole on the surface of the first magnetic pole 10 facing the second magnetic pole 14, recording on the width of the second magnetic pole 14 is performed. An increase in the width of the magnetic field can be suppressed.

A non-magnetic portion 12 for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion 11 is formed on the first magnetic pole 10, and the non-magnetic portion 12
Further, since the recording gap layer 13 is formed between the surface flattened by the convex magnetic pole portion 11 and the second magnetic pole 14, the recording gap layer 13 can be manufactured without ion beam etching, and the etching depth can be reduced. It becomes shallower than before. As a result, the recording characteristics are not degraded, and the production yield is improved.

Further, since it is not necessary to etch an insulating film such as an alumina film having a low etching rate, the manufacturing time is shortened and the productivity is improved.

Further, since the wide recording gap layer 13 can be formed on the surface flattened by the nonmagnetic portion 12 and the convex magnetic pole portion 11, the second recording gap layer 13 formed on the recording gap layer 13 can be formed.
The degree of freedom in designing the width and arrangement of the magnetic poles 14 can be increased.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a thin-film magnetic recording head according to a second embodiment of the present invention, as viewed from the medium facing surface. As shown in FIG. 6, in the second embodiment, the side surface that defines the track width of the convex magnetic pole portion 11 on the medium facing surface is the side surface that defines the track width of the second magnetic pole 14 on the medium facing surface. It is characterized in that it is arranged more inside.

Forming the second magnetic pole 14 with a narrow width is as follows.
It is not easy because the film thickness is large. However, when the flattened recording gap layer 13 is provided as in the present invention, it is easy to form the second magnetic pole 14 wider than the width of the convex magnetic pole part, and the width of the convex magnetic pole part 11 is reduced. By doing so, the track width can be reduced even if the width of the second magnetic pole 14 is wide. Since the convex magnetic pole portion 11 has a relatively small thickness, it can be easily formed in a narrow width. Also in the second embodiment, it is possible to realize a thin-film magnetic recording head suitable for high track density, in which an increase in the width of the recording magnetic field with respect to the width of the second magnetic pole 14 is suppressed.

FIG. 7 is a front view of a thin-film magnetic recording head according to a third embodiment of the present invention, as viewed from the medium facing surface. As shown in FIG. 7, in the third embodiment, the track width of the second magnetic pole 14 on the medium facing surface is defined with respect to the side surface of the convex magnetic pole portion 11 defining the track width on the medium facing surface. Side is shifted in one of the left and right directions (FIG. 7).
Is shifted to the right in this example).

When the recording gap layer 13 is flattened as in the present invention, the second magnetic pole 14 can be formed shifted from the convex magnetic pole portion 11. In this structure,
Since the track width is mainly defined by the width of the convex magnetic pole portion 11 and the second magnetic pole 14 overlapping, it is not necessary to reduce the width of the convex magnetic pole portion 11 and the width of the second magnetic pole 14, Manufacturing becomes easy. Also in the third embodiment, a track width narrower than the width of the second magnetic pole 14 is obtained, and a thin-film magnetic recording head suitable for high track density can be realized.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various changes can be made within the technical scope described in the claims. For example, the first
As the magnetic pole 10 and the convex magnetic pole portion 11, not only an NiFe film but also an amorphous film typified by a CoTaZr film, FeTaN
A microcrystalline film represented by a film, a CoFeNi film, or the like can be used. As the second magnetic pole 14, not only a NiFe film but also a CoFeNi film or the like can be used.

[0044]

According to the present invention, a convex magnetic pole portion having a function as a magnetic pole is formed on a surface of a first magnetic pole facing a second magnetic pole, whereby a recording magnetic field with respect to the width of the second magnetic pole is formed. An increase in width can be suppressed.

Further, a non-magnetic portion for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion is formed on the first magnetic pole, and a recording gap is formed between the surface flattened by the non-magnetic portion and the convex magnetic pole portion and the second magnetic pole. Since the layer is formed, the recording gap layer can be manufactured without performing ion beam etching, and the etching depth becomes smaller than before. As a result, the recording characteristics are not degraded, and the production yield is improved.

Further, since it is not necessary to etch an insulating film such as an alumina film having a low etching rate, the manufacturing time is shortened and the productivity is improved.

Further, since a wide recording gap layer can be formed on the surface flattened by the non-magnetic portion and the convex magnetic pole portion, the degree of freedom in designing the width and arrangement of the second magnetic pole formed on the recording gap layer is reduced. Can be enhanced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a thin-film magnetic recording head according to a first embodiment of the present invention as viewed from a medium facing surface side.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line A-A 'of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line B-B 'of FIG.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic recording head according to the present invention in the order of steps.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic recording head according to the present invention in the order of steps.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a thin-film magnetic recording head according to a second embodiment of the present invention as viewed from a medium facing surface.

FIG. 7 is a front view of a thin-film magnetic recording head according to a third embodiment of the present invention as viewed from a medium facing surface.

FIG. 8 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of an MR / inductive hybrid magnetic head manufactured by a thin film process.

FIG. 9 is a front view of the combined MR / inductive magnetic head as viewed from the surface facing the magnetic medium.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a thin-film magnetic head disclosed in Conventional Example 1.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view showing a thin-film magnetic head disclosed in Conventional Example 2.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10: first magnetic pole 11: convex magnetic pole part 12: non-magnetic part 13: recording gap layer 14: second magnetic pole 15: protective layer 17: photoresist mask 18: photoresist frame 19: first step eliminating layer 20 : Second step eliminating layer 21: Exciting coil 22: Reproducing gap non-magnetic layer 23: Reproducing lower shield layer 24: MR magneto-sensitive element 25: Base serving as slider

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A thin-film magnetic recording head for performing magnetic recording on a magnetic medium by magnetic flux leakage from a recording gap layer provided between a first magnetic pole and a second magnetic pole, wherein
The width of the magnetic pole of the second magnetic pole in the track direction of the magnetic medium facing surface is wider than the width of the second magnetic pole in the track direction;
A convex magnetic pole portion having a function as a magnetic pole is formed on a surface of the first magnetic pole facing the second magnetic pole side, and a non-magnetic portion for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion is formed on the first magnetic pole,
The thin-film magnetic recording head according to claim 1, wherein the recording gap layer is formed on a surface flattened by the non-magnetic portion and the convex magnetic pole portion. 2. The thin-film magnetic recording head according to claim 1, wherein said non-magnetic portion is made of an inorganic material. 3. The thin-film magnetic recording head according to claim 1, wherein said non-magnetic portion is made of alumina. 4. A side surface defining a track width of the convex magnetic pole portion on the medium facing surface is located at substantially the same position as a side surface defining a track width of the second magnetic pole on the medium facing surface. The thin-film magnetic recording head according to claim 1, wherein: 5. A side surface that defines a track width of the convex magnetic pole portion on the medium facing surface is located at a position inside a side surface that defines a track width of the second magnetic pole on the medium facing surface. The thin-film magnetic recording head according to claim 1, wherein: 6. A side surface defining a track width of the second magnetic pole on a medium facing surface is shifted in one of left and right directions with respect to a side surface defining a track width of the convex magnetic pole portion on a medium facing surface. The thin-film magnetic recording head according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the thin-film magnetic recording head is arranged so as to be arranged at a right angle. 7. A method for manufacturing a thin-film magnetic recording head for performing magnetic recording on a magnetic medium by magnetic flux leakage from a recording gap layer provided between a first magnetic pole and a second magnetic pole, the method comprising: Forming a convex magnetic pole portion having a function as a magnetic pole on the magnetic pole; forming a nonmagnetic portion on the first magnetic pole for flattening the convex magnetic pole portion; and forming the nonmagnetic portion and the convex magnetic pole portion. Forming a recording gap layer on the surface flattened by the method, and forming a second magnetic pole on the recording gap layer.