JP2001256613A - Thin-film magnetic head and method of manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize a thin-film magnetic head, having a small magnetic pole width, which is difficult to be manufactured by the technology using conventional photolithography. SOLUTION: In a stage for forming an upper magnetic pole layer, first an electrode layer 21 used, when the upper magnetic pole layer is formed by a flame plating method is formed on a substrate 20. Then a resist for electron beam lithography is applied on the electrode layer 21 to form a resist layer. A resist, consisting essentially of a polyhydroxystyrene based resin, is used as the resist. Then the resist layer is exposed with an electron beam. Then the resist layer is developed to form a frame 22. The upper magnetic pole layer is formed by using the frame 22 and the flame plating method.

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 head having at least an inductive type electromagnetic transducer and a method for manufacturing the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, as a thin film magnetic head used in a magnetic disk drive, a magnetoresistive effect (hereinafter referred to as MR (Ma
gneto Resistive). A composite type having a reproducing element using an element and an inductive electromagnetic conversion recording element is mainly used.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an example of a conventional thin-film magnetic head with a main part cut away. This thin-film magnetic head has a configuration in which a recording element is arranged on a reproducing element.

A reproducing element includes a lower shield layer 103, a lower shield gap film 104 which is an insulating film formed on the lower shield layer 103, and an MR element 105 formed on the lower shield gap film 104. A conductive layer 106 formed on the lower shield gap film 104 and connected to the MR element 105, and an upper shield gap film 107 which is an insulating film formed to cover the MR element 105 and the conductive layer 106; An upper shield layer and a lower magnetic pole layer (hereinafter, referred to as a lower magnetic pole layer) 108 formed on the upper shield gap film 107 are provided.

The recording element includes a lower magnetic pole layer 108, a non-conductive and non-magnetic gap layer 109 formed on the lower magnetic pole layer 108, and a non-conductive and non-magnetic gap layer 109 disposed on the gap layer 109. It has a thin-film coil 110 surrounded by a nonmagnetic resist layer 111, and an upper magnetic pole layer 112 formed on the gap layer 109 and the resist layer 111. The upper magnetic pole layer 112 has a surface facing the recording medium, and is disposed on a magnetic pole portion 112a facing the lower magnetic pole layer 108 via the gap layer 109, and on a side opposite to the medium facing surface of the magnetic pole portion 112a. And a yoke portion 112b. The pole portion 112a has a constant width, and the width of the yoke portion 112b is larger than the width of the pole portion 112a. The width of the magnetic pole portion 112a determines the track width during recording. The yoke portion 112b is connected to the lower magnetic pole layer 8.

By the way, in order to meet the recent demand for improvement in areal recording density in a magnetic disk drive, it is necessary to increase track density and linear recording density in a recording medium. In order to increase the track density, it is necessary to reduce the track width. The track width is determined by the width of the magnetic pole portion (hereinafter referred to as magnetic pole width). Therefore, in order to reduce the track width, it is necessary to finely form a magnetic pole portion that determines the track width.

Heretofore, frame plating and dry etching have been used to form the pole layer. In the dry etching method, first, a magnetic film constituting a magnetic pole portion is formed, and then a resist pattern is formed on the magnetic film.
Then, using this resist pattern as a mask, dry etching such as ion milling is performed to form a pole layer. On the other hand, in the frame plating method, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
As disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 24124, first, an electrode layer made of a conductive material is formed by a sputtering method or the like, and then a resist pattern for forming a pole layer is formed on the electrode layer. Next, electroplating is performed using the resist pattern as a frame to form a magnetic film including a magnetic pole portion. Thereafter, the region of the pole layer surrounded by the frame is covered with a resist pattern formed by photolithography, and unnecessary magnetic films are removed by wet etching or the like to form a pole layer.

[0008]

The dry etching method is disadvantageous in miniaturizing the magnetic pole portion and increasing the precision because there is a variation in the shape due to the etching in addition to the variation in the mask shape. On the other hand, the frame plating method is suitable for forming a magnetic pole layer in a thin-film magnetic head for high recording density because the fineness and high precision of the magnetic pole portion are determined by the dimensional accuracy of the resist frame. It can be said.

In general, to form a frame by the frame plating method, a pattern formed on a reticle (photomask) is formed by using a g-line having a wavelength of 436 nm or a g-line having a wavelength of 365 nm.
A photolithography technique of projecting and exposing a resist applied to a substrate using an i-line of nm or a laser beam of a wavelength of 248 nm using a KrF excimer laser as a light source is used.

The miniaturization of the frame by the photolithography is limited by the resolution of the pattern. The resolution R of the pattern is expressed by the following equation (1) using the wavelength λ of light for projection exposure, the numerical aperture NA of the lens of the exposure apparatus, and the constant k _1. It is limited by the constant k _1.

R = k ₁ · λ / NA (1)

JP-A-11-134609 and JP-A-11-154308 show a technique for forming a recording head having a track width of 0.5 μm or less using a laser beam of a KrF excimer laser. .

However, as described in the above publications, the miniaturization of the frame in the conventional frame plating method can be achieved by using a KrF excimer laser having the shortest wavelength among the lasers currently in practical use. The width of 3 μm was the limit. Also, since the width of the pole layer formed by the frame plating method depends on the resolution of the frame,
When the pole layer is formed using a conventional frame plating method, the track width of the recording element cannot be made smaller than 0.3 μm.

An electron beam exposure apparatus is generally used to manufacture the above-described reticle (photomask) for photolithography. The electron beam exposure apparatus is 0.0
This is an apparatus for irradiating an electron beam having a diameter of from 0.5 to 1 μm to an electron beam exposure resist that is sensitive to an electron beam. The lithography technique using this electron beam exposure apparatus is called electron beam lithography. In electron beam lithography,
Unlike photolithography, since the resolution does not depend on the equation (1), for example, a resolution of 0.05 μm or less can be achieved.

However, conventional electron beam lithography is only used for patterning a mask for photolithography and patterning a contact hole of a semiconductor. Therefore, the thickness of a resist exposed by an electron beam in electron beam lithography is at most 0.5 μm. On the other hand, the thickness of the resist frame required for forming the pole layer of the above-described thin-film magnetic head is usually 1 μm or more in order to secure the thickness of the pole layer. The resolution of the resist pattern largely depends on the thickness of the resist, and the resolution decreases as the thickness of the resist increases. Therefore, conventionally, it has not been performed to form a fine magnetic pole layer having a magnetic pole width of, for example, 0.3 μm or less using electron beam lithography.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a thin-film magnetic head having a small magnetic pole width and a method of manufacturing the same, which have been difficult to manufacture by conventional techniques using photolithography. To provide.

[0017]

A thin-film magnetic head according to the present invention is magnetically coupled to each other, includes magnetic pole portions facing each other on a medium facing surface side facing a recording medium, and includes at least one layer. A first magnetic layer, a second magnetic layer, a gap layer provided between a magnetic pole portion of the first magnetic layer and a magnetic pole portion of the second magnetic layer, at least a part of the first magnetic layer and the second magnetic layer. A thin-film coil provided in a state insulated from the first and second magnetic layers, and the width of the magnetic pole portion in at least one of the magnetic layers is smaller than 0.3 μm.

In the thin-film magnetic head of the present invention, since the width of the magnetic pole portion in at least one of the magnetic layers is smaller than 0.3 μm, it is possible to improve the areal recording density.

In the thin film magnetic head of the present invention, the width of the magnetic pole portion in at least one of the magnetic layers may be 0.2 μm or less.

In the thin-film magnetic head of the present invention,
The thickness of the magnetic pole portion in at least one of the magnetic layers may be 0.5 μm or more.

Further, the thin-film magnetic head of the present invention further comprises:
A reproducing magnetoresistive element may be provided.

A method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to the present invention includes a first and a first layer each including at least one layer, the magnetic pole portions being magnetically connected to each other, including magnetic pole portions facing each other on a medium facing surface side facing a recording medium. A second magnetic layer, a gap layer provided between a magnetic pole portion of the first magnetic layer and a magnetic pole portion of the second magnetic layer, and at least a part between the first and second magnetic layers. A method for manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head comprising: a thin-film coil provided in a state insulated from first and second magnetic layers, the method comprising: forming a first magnetic layer; A step of forming a gap layer on the magnetic layer, a step of forming a second magnetic layer on the gap layer, and at least a portion between the first and second magnetic layers. It is placed insulated from the two magnetic layers Forming a thin-film coil, wherein at least one of the magnetic layers is formed by forming a resist layer having photosensitivity to an electron beam and directly irradiating the resist layer with an electron beam. Exposing the resist layer, developing the exposed resist layer to form a frame, and forming a layer including a magnetic pole portion by plating using the frame.

In the method of manufacturing a thin film magnetic head according to the present invention,
By irradiating the resist layer directly with an electron beam to expose and develop the resist layer, a frame for forming a layer including a magnetic pole portion is manufactured, so that a fine frame can be manufactured. It is possible to manufacture a thin-film magnetic head having a small width.

In the method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to the present invention, in the step of forming a layer including a magnetic pole portion, an electroplating method may be used.

In the method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to the present invention, in the step of forming a resist layer, the resist layer may be formed using a resist containing a polyhydroxystyrene-based resin as a main component.

In the method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head of the present invention, in the step of forming a resist layer, a resist having a smaller exposure area in the step of exposing the resist layer is selected from a positive resist and a negative resist. May be used to form a resist layer.

In the method of manufacturing a thin film magnetic head according to the present invention, the width of the portion corresponding to the magnetic pole portion in the frame may be smaller than 0.3 μm, and may be 0.2 μm or less.

In the method of manufacturing a thin film magnetic head according to the present invention, the thickness of the frame may be 0.5 μm or more.

The method of manufacturing a thin film magnetic head according to the present invention may further include a step of forming a magnetoresistive element for reproduction.

[0030]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. First, an outline of a thin film magnetic head and a method of manufacturing the same according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
5A to 10, (a) shows a cross section perpendicular to the medium facing surface, and (b) shows a cross section of the magnetic pole portion parallel to the medium facing surface.

In the method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to the present embodiment, first, as shown in FIG. 5, for example, alumina (Al) is formed on a substrate 1 made of AlTiC (Al ₂ O ₃ .TiC). _An insulating layer 2 of ₂ O ₃ ) is formed.
Next, a lower shield layer 3 for a reproducing element made of a magnetic material, for example, permalloy is formed on the insulating layer 2.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6, a lower shield gap film 4 as an insulating film is formed on the lower shield layer 3.
To form Next, on the lower shield gap film 4,
An MR element 5 for reproduction is formed. One end of the MR element 5 is disposed on the medium facing surface 30 facing the recording medium.
The MR element 5 includes an AMR element, a GMR element, or a TMR element.
An element using a magnetosensitive film exhibiting a magnetoresistance effect, such as an MR (tunnel magnetoresistance) element, can be used. next,
A pair of electrode layers 6 electrically connected to the MR element 5 are formed on the lower shield gap film 4. Next, an upper shield gap film 7 as an insulating film is formed, and the MR element 5 is embedded in the shield gap films 4 and 7.

Next, on the upper shield gap film 7,
A first layer 8a of an upper shield layer and a lower magnetic pole layer (hereinafter, referred to as a lower magnetic pole layer) 8 made of a magnetic material and used for both a reproducing element and a recording element is formed. The lower magnetic pole layer 8 includes the first layer 8a, and second layers 8b and 8c to be described later. First layer 8 of lower pole layer 8
a is arranged at a position facing at least a part of a thin film coil described later.

Next, the second layer 8b and the layer 8c of the lower pole layer 8 are formed on the first layer 8a of the lower pole layer 8. The second layer 8b forms the pole portion of the lower pole layer 8. The layer 8c is a portion for connecting the first layer 8a to an upper magnetic pole layer described later, and is arranged at a position near the center of the thin-film coil described later. The position of the end of the second layer 8b opposite to the medium facing surface 30 in the portion facing the upper magnetic pole layer defines the throat height. The throat height refers to the length (height) of the portion where the two magnetic pole layers face each other via the recording gap layer, that is, the pole portion from the end on the medium facing surface side to the end on the opposite side.

The second layer 8b and the layer 8c of the lower magnetic pole layer 8
Is NiFe (Ni: 80% by weight, Fe: 20% by weight)
Alternatively, a high saturation magnetic flux density material such as NiFe (Ni: 45% by weight, Fe: 55% by weight) or the like may be used, and may be formed by a plating method.
It may be formed by sputtering FeZrN or the like. In addition, CoFe, which is a high saturation magnetic flux density material,
A Co-based amorphous material or the like may be used.

Next, as shown in FIG. 7, an insulating film 9 made of, for example, alumina is formed on the whole.

Next, a thin-film coil 10 is formed on the insulating film 9 so as to partially pass between the second layer 8b and the third layer 8c, centering on the third layer 8c. I do. FIG.
In FIG. 2A, reference numeral 10a denotes a connection portion for connecting the thin-film coil 10 to a conductive layer (lead) described later.

Next, as shown in FIG. 8, an insulating layer 11 made of, for example, alumina is formed on the whole. Next, the insulating layer 11 is polished by, for example, CMP (chemical mechanical polishing) until the second layer 8b and the layer 8c of the lower pole layer 8 are exposed, and the surface is flattened. Here, FIG.
In the example, the thin film coil 10 is not exposed, but the thin film coil 10 may be exposed.

Next, the second layer 8 of the exposed lower magnetic pole layer 8 is formed.
A recording gap layer 12 made of an insulating material is formed on the layer b, the layer 8c and the insulating layer 11.

Next, in order to form a magnetic path, a contact hole is formed by partially etching the recording gap layer 12 on the layer 8c in the lower magnetic pole layer 8. In the portion above the connection portion 10a of the thin film coil 10, the recording gap layer 12 and the insulating layer 11 are partially etched to form a contact hole.

Next, as shown in FIG. 9, on the recording gap layer 12, from the medium facing surface 30 to the lower magnetic pole layer 8
The upper magnetic pole layer 13 made of a magnetic material is formed on the upper portion of the layer 8c, and the conductive layer 16 is formed so as to be connected to the connection portion 10a of the thin-film coil 10.
The upper magnetic pole layer 13 is in contact with and magnetically connected to the layer 8c of the lower magnetic pole layer 8 via a contact hole formed in a portion of the lower magnetic pole layer 8 above the layer 8c. The upper magnetic pole layer 13 is formed by a frame plating method. The method of forming the upper magnetic pole layer 13 will be described later in detail.

Next, the recording gap layer 12 is selectively etched by dry etching using the upper pole layer 13 as a mask. Next, a part of the second layer 8b of the lower magnetic pole layer 8 is etched by using the upper magnetic pole layer 13 as a mask, for example, by argon ion milling.
It has a trim structure as shown in FIG. According to the trim structure, it is possible to prevent the effective track width from increasing due to the spread of the magnetic flux in the magnetic pole portion.

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, an overcoat layer 17 made of, for example, alumina is formed on the entire surface.
The surface is polished to form an electrode pad (not shown).

The thin-film magnetic head according to the present embodiment has a reproducing element and an inductive electromagnetic conversion recording element. The reproducing element has an MR element 5 and an MR element 5 on the medium facing surface 30 side.
It has a lower shield layer 3 and an upper shield layer (lower magnetic pole layer 8) that are arranged to face each other with the element 5 interposed therebetween and shield the MR element 5.

The recording element includes magnetic pole portions magnetically connected to each other and includes magnetic pole portions facing each other on the medium facing surface 30 side, and includes a lower magnetic pole layer 8 and an upper magnetic pole layer 13 each including at least one layer. And a recording gap layer 12 provided between the magnetic pole portion of the upper magnetic pole layer 13 and the magnetic pole portion of the upper magnetic pole layer 13, and at least a part thereof is provided between the lower magnetic pole layer 8 and the upper magnetic pole layer 13 while being insulated therefrom. And a thin film coil 10 provided.

Next, the upper pole layer 13 in the thin-film magnetic head according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of the upper magnetic pole layer 13. In FIG. 1, the recording gap layer 1
The portions up to 2 are shown as substrates 20. As shown in FIG. 1, on the substrate 20, an electrode layer 21 used when the upper magnetic pole layer 13 is formed by the frame plating method.
Are formed. The electrode layer 21 is made of, for example, titanium (T
i), copper (Cu), permalloy (NiFe) and other metals, but may be formed of an inorganic or organic material as long as it has conductivity.
When the electrode layer 21 is a magnetic material such as permalloy,
The electrode layer 21 also becomes a part of the upper magnetic pole layer 13.

On the electrode layer 21, an upper magnetic pole layer 13 made of a soft metal such as permalloy is formed. The upper magnetic pole layer 13 is disposed on the medium facing surface side, and faces the second layer 8b (see FIG. 10A) of the lower magnetic pole layer 8 via the recording gap layer 12 (see FIG. 10A). It includes a magnetic pole portion 13a and a yoke portion 13b disposed on the opposite side of the magnetic pole portion 13a from the medium facing surface. The pole portion 13a has a constant width, and the width of the yoke portion 13b is larger than the width of the pole portion 13a. The yoke portion 13b is connected to the lower magnetic pole layer 8 (FIG. 10A).
reference).

Referring to FIG. 1, the substrate 2 includes the line AA ′.
The cross section perpendicular to the zero plane is the medium facing surface of the thin-film magnetic head. The upper magnetic pole layer 13 on the medium facing surface
Of the magnetic pole portion 13a, that is, the magnetic pole width Tw determines the track width of the recording element in the thin-film magnetic head according to the present embodiment.

In the thin film magnetic head according to this embodiment,
The magnetic pole width Tw is, for example, 0.5 μm or less. Magnetic pole width Tw
Are 0.5 μm or less, 0.3 μm or less, and 0.2 μm or less, the areal recording densities of 20 gigabits / (inch) ² or more and 40 gigabits / (inch) ² or more, respectively.
As described above, it corresponds to a magnetic disk device of 65 gigabits / (inch) ² or more. In the present embodiment, the magnetic pole width Tw is preferably smaller than 0.3 μm, and more preferably 0.2 μm or less.

Next, a method of forming the upper magnetic pole layer 13 in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a frame for forming the upper magnetic pole layer 13 shown in FIG. 1 by a frame plating method.

In the method of forming upper magnetic pole layer 13 in the present embodiment, first, electrode layer 21 used when forming upper magnetic pole layer 13 by frame plating on substrate 20 is formed by sputtering or the like. I do.

Next, a resist for electron beam lithography is applied on the electrode layer 21 to form a resist layer. As a method of applying the resist, any application method such as spin coating and spray coating may be used as long as the method can uniformly apply a suitable film thickness. Here, as an example, a resist having a viscosity of 11 cP (0.011 Pa ·
s) diluted with an organic solvent to about
It shall be applied by spin coating at a speed of 000 rpm.

The thickness of the resist layer is preferably 0.5 μm or more, more preferably 1 μm or more. Here, as an example, the thickness of the resist layer is set to 1.3 μm.

When the thickness of the resist layer is 1 μm or more,
In a resist mainly composed of a conventional novolak resin,
Due to the lack of conductivity, electrons are scattered in the resist layer and the resolution is reduced. In the case of a resist containing a novolak-based resin as a main component, the resin shrinks by baking before and after exposure, so that the accuracy of the resist pattern is reduced, and the resist pattern is reduced by 0.3
A frame with a width of less than μm could not be produced.

In this embodiment, a resist mainly composed of a polyhydroxystyrene resin is used as a resist for electron beam lithography, instead of a conventional resist mainly composed of a novolak resin. The inventor of the present application has found that a frame having a thickness of 1 μm or more and a width of 0.3 μm or less can be manufactured by using this resist. As such a resist, for example, FEPS-15 manufactured by Fuji Film Ohlin Co., Ltd.
0 (product name) can be used.

In electron beam exposure, unlike photolithography in which a wide area is collectively patterned by mask projection, since an electron beam having a small diameter is scanned, the exposure time is proportional to the exposure area. The shorter the exposure time, the better the deterioration of the resist due to aging and the improvement in throughput. Therefore, in the present embodiment, in order to form the upper magnetic pole layer 13 by the frame plating method, it is better to use a resist having a smaller exposure area among the positive resist and the negative resist. That is,
When a positive resist is used, a portion of the resist layer other than a frame portion is exposed, and when a negative resist is used, a frame portion of the resist layer is exposed. Therefore, on the surface of the resist layer, the area of the frame portion is compared with the area of the other portion. If the area of the frame portion is smaller, a negative resist is used, and the area of the frame portion is used. When the area is larger, it is preferable to use a positive resist.

In the method of forming the upper magnetic pole layer 13 in the present embodiment, next, stabilization of the resin in the resist layer,
The resist layer is heat-treated for each substrate 20 for the purpose of evaporating the solvent and improving the adhesion to the electrode layer. The heat treatment temperature is 90
At ~ 130 ° C, the time is about 60 seconds.

When the thickness of the resist layer is increased,
The electrical resistance between the surface of the resist layer and the substrate increases, and the surface of the resist layer is charged during exposure with an electron beam, causing a shift in the scanning position of the electron beam. Therefore, in order to prevent electrification on the surface of the resist layer, it is preferable to apply a conductive material to the surface of the resist layer or to form an ultrathin film made of a metal such as aluminum.

Next, the resist layer is exposed to an electron beam. Here, as an example, among the exposure conditions, the acceleration voltage of the electron beam is set to 50 kV, and the irradiation amount of the electron beam per unit area is set to 13 to 30 μC / cm ² .

Next, after exposure, the substrate 20 is heated to 90 to 130 ° C.
Heat treatment at a temperature of to promote the chemical reaction of the resist. A heat treatment time of 60 seconds is sufficient.

Next, the resist layer is developed using a 2.38% aqueous solution of tetramethylammonium hydroxide (hereinafter referred to as TMAH) as a developing solution. If the water repellency of the resist layer or the electrode layer 21 is strong, a surfactant having a concentration of 1% or less may be added to the developer. In addition, if the resin in the resist layer has a long linear chain and it is difficult to develop with TMAH having a concentration of 2.38%, TMAH is used.
The concentration of H may be increased. Here, as an example, a 2.38% aqueous solution of TMAH is used as a developer. As this developer, FHD-5 (trade name) manufactured by Fujifilm Ohlin Co., Ltd. can be used.

Next, after the development is completed, the developing solution is washed away with a rinsing solution such as water, and dried to produce a frame 22 as shown in FIG.

When the development of the resist layer is not completely completed and the remaining resist is partially generated, ashing with reactive ion etching or oxygen plasma may be performed.

Next, after the frame 22 is manufactured, the electrode layer 2 is formed by electroplating using, for example, a mixed aqueous solution containing a nickel salt, an iron salt and an additive for electroplating as an electrolytic solution.
The upper magnetic pole layer 13 is formed by depositing a Ni—Fe alloy (permalloy) on the first magnetic layer 1.

In this embodiment, the step of forming the upper pole layer 13 by electroplating is the same as the step of forming the upper pole layer by electroplating in a conventional thin-film magnetic head.

In the present embodiment, the steps other than the step of forming the upper magnetic pole layer 13 are the same as those of the conventional thin-film magnetic head.

FIG. 3 shows a frame 2 according to the present embodiment.
2, the thickness of the resist layer (frame 22) and the width Tw of the portion corresponding to the pole portion 13 a of the upper pole layer 13.
Shows an example of the result of obtaining the relationship with the minimum value of. As can be seen from FIG. 3, frame 2 in the present embodiment
No. 2 has the highest aspect ratio when the thickness of the resist layer is 1 to 3 μm, and the value is 8 to 9.
According to the present embodiment, a frame 22 having a thickness of 1.3 μm and a width Tw of 0.16 μm at a portion corresponding to the magnetic pole portion 13a could be manufactured.

According to the present embodiment, the above-mentioned thickness is 1.3 μm and the width Tw of the portion corresponding to the magnetic pole portion 13a is Tw.
By using the frame 22 of 0.16 μm,
The upper magnetic pole layer 13 having a thickness of 1.3 μm and a width of the magnetic pole portion 13a, that is, a magnetic pole width Tw of 0.16 μm could be formed.

FIG. 4 is a drawing showing a photograph obtained by observing the magnetic pole portion 13a of the upper magnetic pole layer 13 from the side facing the medium with an electron beam microscope and photographing it.

According to the present embodiment, by using the thin-film magnetic head having the above-described upper magnetic pole layer 13 having the thickness of 1.3 μm and the magnetic pole width Tw of 0.16 μm, the magnetic disk drive can perform surface recording. It is possible to achieve a high recording density of 65 gigabits / (inch) ² .

As described above, according to the present embodiment, a frame is manufactured using electron beam lithography and a resist containing polyhydroxystyrene-based resin as a main component, and the frame is formed by frame plating using this frame. By forming the pole layer, it becomes possible to manufacture a thin-film magnetic head having a narrow track with a track width of 0.5 μm or less. In particular, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to manufacture a thin-film magnetic head having a magnetic pole width of less than 0.3 μm, which has been difficult to manufacture by a technique using conventional photolithography. From these facts, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to improve the areal recording density in the magnetic disk device.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since the resist layer is formed using a resist containing polyhydroxystyrene resin as a main component, a fine frame can be formed even when the thickness of the resist layer is large. It becomes possible to manufacture.

In this embodiment, the throughput is improved by forming a resist layer for fabricating a frame by using a resist having a smaller exposure area among the positive resist and the negative resist. be able to.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, the present invention can be applied to a thin-film magnetic head in which the upper and lower positions of a reproducing element and a recording element are interchanged with respect to the thin-film magnetic head in the embodiment.

The present invention can also be applied to a case where the upper magnetic pole layer is not a flat layer but a bent layer as shown in FIG.

The present invention can be applied to a case where the upper pole layer is composed of a plurality of layers. In this case, all the layers constituting the upper magnetic pole layer may be formed by the method according to the present invention, or only some of the layers including the magnetic pole portion may be formed by the method according to the present invention. .

The present invention can also be applied to a thin-film magnetic head in which the track width of the recording element is determined not by the upper magnetic pole layer but by the magnetic pole portion of the lower magnetic pole layer. In this case, a thin film magnetic head having a narrow track can be manufactured by forming the lower magnetic pole layer for determining the track width by the method according to the present invention.

The manufacturing method of the present invention can be applied to a case where an ultra-fine pattern other than the pole layer of the thin-film magnetic head is formed by a frame plating method, or a case where an ultra-fine mask pattern is formed.

[0079]

As described above, claims 1 to 4
According to the thin film magnetic head described in any of the above, there is an effect that a thin film magnetic head in which the width of the magnetic pole portion in at least one of the magnetic layers is smaller than 0.3 μm can be realized.

According to the method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to any one of claims 5 to 12, the resist layer is directly irradiated with an electron beam to expose and develop the resist layer. Since a frame for forming a layer including a portion is manufactured, a fine frame can be manufactured, thereby producing an effect that a thin-film magnetic head having a small magnetic pole width can be manufactured.

According to the method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head of the present invention, since the resist layer is formed using a resist containing a polyhydroxystyrene-based resin as a main component, the thickness of the resist layer is reduced. This has the effect that a fine frame can be manufactured even when it is large.

According to the method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to the eighth aspect, the resist layer is formed by using the resist having the smaller exposure area among the positive resist and the negative resist. There is an effect that the throughput can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of an upper pole layer in a thin-film magnetic head according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a frame for forming the upper magnetic pole layer shown in FIG. 1 by a frame plating method.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a relationship between a resist thickness and a minimum value of a width of a portion corresponding to a magnetic pole portion in a frame according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a photograph obtained by observing a magnetic pole portion from the medium facing surface side with an electron beam microscope and photographing the magnetic pole portion in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing one step in a method of manufacturing the thin-film magnetic head according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a step following the step shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a step following the step shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a step following the step shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a step following the step shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a thin-film magnetic head according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing an example of a conventional thin-film magnetic head with a main part cut away.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Substrate, 2 ... Insulating layer, 3 ... Lower shield layer, 5 ... MR
Element 8, lower magnetic pole layer, 10 thin film coil, 12 recording gap layer, 13 upper magnetic pole layer, 13a magnetic pole portion, 1
3b: yoke portion, 17: overcoat layer, 20: substrate, 21: electrode layer, 22: frame.

Claims (12)

[Claims] A first and a second magnetic layer magnetically coupled to each other and including magnetic pole portions facing each other on a medium facing surface side facing a recording medium, each including at least one layer; A gap layer provided between the magnetic pole portion of the magnetic layer and the magnetic pole portion of the second magnetic layer, at least a part of which is between the first and second magnetic layers;
A thin-film coil provided in an insulated state with respect to the first and second magnetic layers, wherein a width of a magnetic pole portion in at least one of the magnetic layers is 0.3
A thin film magnetic head characterized by being smaller than μm. 2. The thin-film magnetic head according to claim 1, wherein the width of the magnetic pole portion in at least one of the magnetic layers is 0.2 μm or less. 3. The thin-film magnetic head according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the magnetic pole portion in the at least one magnetic layer is 0.5 μm or more. 4. The thin-film magnetic head according to claim 1, further comprising a reproducing magnetoresistive element. 5. A first and a second magnetic layer magnetically connected to each other, including magnetic pole portions facing each other on a medium facing surface side facing a recording medium, and each including at least one layer; A gap layer provided between the magnetic pole portion of the magnetic layer and the magnetic pole portion of the second magnetic layer, at least a part of which is between the first and second magnetic layers;
A method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head comprising: a thin-film coil provided in a state insulated from the first and second magnetic layers; and a step of forming the first magnetic layer; Forming the gap layer on the first magnetic layer; forming the second magnetic layer on the gap layer; at least a portion between the first and second magnetic layers ,
Forming the thin-film coil so as to be insulated from the first and second magnetic layers. The step of forming at least one magnetic layer comprises: Forming a resist layer having photosensitivity, directly irradiating the resist layer with an electron beam to expose the resist layer, developing the exposed resist layer to form a frame, Forming a layer including a magnetic pole portion by a plating method using a frame. 6. The method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to claim 5, wherein the step of forming the layer including the magnetic pole portion uses an electroplating method. 7. The step of forming the resist layer, wherein the resist layer is formed using a resist containing a polyhydroxystyrene-based resin as a main component.
7. The method for manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to 6. 8. In the step of forming the resist layer, it is preferable that the resist layer is formed using a resist having a smaller exposure area in the step of exposing the resist layer, of the positive resist and the negative resist. A method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to any one of claims 5 to 7. 9. The method according to claim 5, wherein a width of a portion corresponding to a magnetic pole portion in the frame is smaller than 0.3 μm. 10. The method according to claim 9, wherein a width of a portion corresponding to a magnetic pole portion in the frame is 0.2 μm or less. 11. The method according to claim 5, wherein the thickness of the frame is 0.5 μm or more. 12. The method according to claim 5, further comprising the step of forming a magnetoresistive element for reproduction.
2. The method for manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head according to claim 1.