JP2007335018A - Multichannel head - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a multichannel head capable of narrowing a pitch. <P>SOLUTION: The multichannel head 1 is provided with a substrate 11, a plurality of write elements 5 arrayed in a track width direction in the upper part of its stacking direction, and a plurality of read elements 7 arrayed in a track width direction in the upper part of their stacking direction. The plurality of write elements include those shifted in position of a stacking direction Y. The plurality of read elements are all arranged in the higher part in the stacking direction than the write element 5b located in the uppermost part of the stacking direction among the plurality of write elements. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a multi-channel head including a plurality of recording elements and a plurality of reproducing elements.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in the computer field, there is a data storage device that records and reproduces magnetic information on a linear tape as a data backup device. Patent Document 1 shows an example of a multi-channel head used in such a data storage device.

In such a multichannel head, a plurality of recording elements and reproducing elements are arranged side by side along a direction orthogonal to the running direction of the linear tape. More specifically, a plurality of element pairs each including one recording element and one reproducing element are provided. First, the element pair itself is along a direction orthogonal to the running direction of the linear tape. Are lined up. The recording elements themselves of each element pair are also arranged along the direction orthogonal to the running direction of the linear tape in relation to the recording elements of the adjacent element pairs. Further, the reproducing element is the same, and the reproducing elements themselves of each element pair are arranged in a direction orthogonal to the running direction of the linear tape in relation to the reproducing element of the adjacent element pair.
JP 2005-276267 A

  In recent years, for recording / reproducing magnetic information, it has been desired to increase the capacity and to read / write at high speed, and even in a multi-channel head, it is preferable if the interval between adjacent elements can be reduced.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a multi-channel head capable of narrowing the pitch.

In order to solve the above-described problems, a multichannel head according to the present invention includes a substrate, a plurality of write elements arranged in the track width direction above the substrate in the stacking direction, and a stack of the plurality of write elements. A multi-channel head comprising a plurality of reading elements arranged side by side in the track width direction above the direction, wherein the plurality of writing elements include ones whose positions in the stacking direction are shifted, Each of the reading elements is arranged above the writing element that is the uppermost in the stacking direction among the plurality of writing elements.
The plurality of reading elements may be aligned in the stacking direction.

  Preferably, an interval between the writing element that is the uppermost in the stacking direction among the plurality of write elements and the reading element that is provided in the stacking direction so as to be paired with the writing element is 3.0 [μm]. It is set above.

  Further, in such a multi-channel head, the distance between the yokes of adjacent write elements that are shifted in the stacking direction may be set to 3.0 [μm] or more.

  In order to solve the same problem, another multi-channel head according to the present invention includes a substrate, a plurality of write elements arranged in the track width direction above the stacking direction of the substrate, and the plurality of write elements. A multi-channel head comprising a plurality of reading elements arranged side by side in the track width direction above the stacking direction, wherein the plurality of writing elements include ones whose positions in the stacking direction are shifted, The inter-yoke distance between adjacent write elements that are displaced in the direction is set to 3.0 [μm] or more.

  According to the present invention, since a plurality of write elements are arranged in multiple stages, interference between coils can be avoided, and the interval between the write elements can be reduced in the track width direction, that is, the pitch is reduced. be able to.

  The other features of the present invention and the operational effects thereof will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals indicate the same or corresponding parts. In addition, the vertical direction in the present specification and claims is a direction along the stacking direction, and the side on which stacking precedes, such as the substrate side, is expressed as the lower side, and the side on which stacking is continued, such as the protective layer side, is expressed as the upper side. ing.

  The multi-channel head according to the present embodiment is a magnetic head for recording / reproducing magnetic information on / from a linear tape in a magnetic tape storage device such as an LTO (Linear Tape-Open) standard that backs up computer data. Can be applied.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 shows a multi-channel head according to the present embodiment. The multichannel head 1 is configured by attaching two strip-shaped head chips 3 symmetrically. Each of the head chips 3 is provided with a plurality of writing elements 5 and a plurality of reading elements 7.

  More specifically, first, when one writing element 5 and one reading element 7 are combined into one element pair 9, each head chip 3 has 16 pieces in this embodiment. An element pair 9 is arranged. The element pairs 9 are arranged side by side in the track width direction X, that is, the shift direction S of the multi-channel head 1 described later, and substantially perpendicular to the traveling direction T of the linear tape 11.

  Next, the main part of the head chip will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a pair of elements (for four) in the head chip, and includes a view seen from the medium (linear tape) facing surface side and a view seen from the side surface side. In the drawing seen from the medium facing surface side, the coil is shown in a projected manner so that it can be easily understood visually.

  The head chip 3 is configured by a laminated mode of a plurality of films. Above the stacking direction Y of the substrate 11, a plurality of write elements 5 are arranged in the track width direction X. Further, a plurality of reading elements 7 are arranged side by side in the track width direction X above the stacking direction Y of the plurality of writing elements 5.

  Since each of the writing element 5 and the reading element 7 may have a known configuration, the configuration will be briefly described. The write element 5 includes a lower yoke 13 (including a lower pole portion), an upper yoke 15 (including an upper pole portion), a coil 17, and a gap film 19. The reading element 7 is a magnetoresistive effect film, and is configured as, for example, GMR or TMR. An upper magnetic shield 21 and a lower magnetic shield 23 are provided above and below the reading element 7 in the stacking direction Y.

  The plurality of writing elements 5 are configured in the same size and structure, but are arranged in a multistage manner in which the vertical position in the stacking direction Y is shifted. In the present embodiment, 16 write elements 5 are provided, which are positions farther from the substrate 11 and the eight write elements 5 (5a) provided at the lower stage, which is closer to the substrate 11. It can be divided into eight write elements 5 (5b) provided in the upper stage. In addition, every other write element 5 is arranged in such a manner that every other upper write element 5 and lower write element 5 are repeated. Therefore, when viewed from the medium facing surface side, the lower yoke 13 (exactly pole portion) and the upper yoke 15 (exactly pole portion) of the writing element 5 are arranged in a staggered manner.

  The above-described arrangement mode is merely an example, and the number of write elements 5 per head chip 3 can be appropriately changed. Further, the number of arrangement stages is not limited to two as described above, and may be arranged so as to be shifted up and down in three or more stages. Furthermore, it is not necessarily limited that the vertical position of the next adjacent write element 5 is shifted with respect to all the write elements 5. In other words, the writing element 5 whose top and bottom are aligned at the same height may partially include the adjacent arrangement mode.

  Each of the plurality of reading elements 7 is disposed further above the writing element 5 (5b) positioned at the uppermost position in the stacking direction among the plurality of writing elements 5. For example, in the present embodiment, the plurality of reading elements 7 are all arranged at the same height in the stacking direction Y. Further, the upper magnetic shield 21 and the lower magnetic shield 23 are all arranged with the same height in the stacking direction Y. Even if arranged in this manner, the reading element does not cause the problem of coil interference unlike the writing element, so that the narrowing of the pitch is not hindered. It is suitable from the viewpoint of diversion. Note that the reading elements may be arranged so as to be shifted up and down with respect to the stacking direction if necessary to reduce the pitch, and the present invention does not exclude such a configuration.

  Next, a manufacturing process of the multichannel head 1 according to the present embodiment as shown in FIG. 1 will be described. The multi-channel head 1 is configured by attaching two strip-shaped head chips 3 symmetrically, and each head chip 3 is manufactured as follows. The film forming process and the pattern forming process of the shape relating to the writing element 5 and the reading element 7 and the surrounding portions can be performed in a known manner, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  First, the board | substrate 11 is comprised in layered form. Subsequently, a lower write element 5 (5a) is formed above the substrate 11 via a predetermined spacer layer 25a, and an upper write element 5 (via a spacer layer 25b thicker than the spacer layer 25a). 5b). In forming the write element 5, a thermal effect process is performed when the insulating layer 27 a between the lower yoke 13 and the coil 17 and the insulating layer 27 b between the coil 17 and the upper yoke 15 are formed. The

  Further, a predetermined spacer layer 25c and a spacer layer 25d are stacked above the lower write element 5 (5a) and above the upper write element 5 (5b), respectively. Subsequently, a plurality of lower magnetic shields 23, a reading element 7, an upper magnetic shield 21, a protective layer 25e, and the like are formed thereon.

  According to the multichannel head 1 as described above, in the head chip 3, the plurality of writing elements 5 are arranged in multiple stages in which the vertical position in the stacking direction Y is shifted. For this reason, the shifted write elements 5 are in a positional relationship in which the coils 17 overlap in plan view, but do not actually come into contact with each other. It can be packed in the track width direction X, that is, the pitch can be reduced. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, in the dimension D = 2.5 [mm] in the track width direction X, 16 element pairs 9, that is, 16 write elements 5 and 16 read elements each. 7 can be arranged.

  In the formation of the write element 5, heat treatment is performed when the upper and lower insulating layers 27a and 27b sandwiching the coil 17 are formed. In the present embodiment, the plurality of read elements 7 are Any of the plurality of write elements 5 is disposed above the write element 5 (5b) positioned at the uppermost position in the stacking direction, so that the heat treatment of the uppermost insulating layer 27b is completed. After that, the reading element 7 is formed into a film. For this reason, it is possible to avoid deterioration of the characteristics of the reading element 7 due to heating. That is, it is possible to prevent deterioration of characteristics due to heating in the reading element 7 while the writing element 5 is configured in multiple stages so as to reduce the pitch.

  In addition, when the spacing between the writing element 5 (5b) positioned above the stacking direction and the reading element 7 paired with the writing element 5 (5b) is defined as RW space, the present inventor assumes RW space and BER (Bits Error). Rate). The result is shown in the graph of FIG. As can be seen, from the viewpoint of keeping the BER low, the interval between the writing element 5 (5b) positioned above the stacking direction and the reading element 7 paired therewith is 3.0 or more [μm] or more. In view of the actual variation, it is more preferably 3.2 [μm] or more. Strictly speaking, RW space represents the distance between the upper surface of the upper pole portion of the writing element 5 and the upper surface of the lower magnetic shield 23 below the reading element 7.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
The multi-channel head according to the second embodiment of the present invention has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment except for the arrangement of the reading elements and the features to be described later regarding the distance between adjacent writing elements. It may be.

  In the multi-channel head according to the second embodiment, all of the reading elements are not limited to a mode in which the reading elements are arranged higher in the stacking direction than the writing elements in the uppermost stacking direction. The intervals in the stacking direction with the insertion elements are all uniform, and the reading elements 7 may also be arranged in multiple stages following the multi-stage arrangement of the writing elements. Further, the reading element does not necessarily have to be paired with the writing element, and the same number of reading elements as the writing elements need not be provided. Of course, the configuration similar to that of the first embodiment with respect to the reading element is not excluded, and may be configured similarly to the first embodiment.

  A feature of the multi-channel head according to the second embodiment is that the distance between adjacent write elements is set as follows. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing the relationship between adjacent write elements, FIG. 5A is a diagram showing from the medium facing surface side, and FIG. 5B is a diagram showing from the laminated surface side. First, also in the multi-channel head 1 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of writing elements 5 are provided and arranged in multiple stages in which the vertical position in the stacking direction Y is shifted as in the first embodiment. , Respectively, are provided with a lower yoke 13, a coil 17, an upper yoke 15 and the like. Then, the distance between the magnetic parts adjacent to each other in the lower write element 5 (5a) and the upper write element 5 (5b), in this example, the shortest distance between the yokes (simply “the distance between the yokes”). B) is set to 3.0 [μm] or more.

  In such a multi-channel head according to the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the plurality of write elements 5 are arranged in multiple stages in which the vertical position in the stacking direction Y is shifted. Interference can be avoided, and the interval between the write elements 5 can be reduced in the track width direction X, that is, the pitch can be reduced.

  In addition, the inter-yoke distance B is set to 3.0 [μm] or more in the lower write element 5 (5a) and the upper write element 5 (5b). For this reason, while narrowing the pitch, the problem that the magnetic field excited by the write current flowing through the coil 17 interferes with each other and the original write characteristics are impaired can be avoided.

  That is, the inventor investigated the relationship between the inter-yoke distance B of the upper and lower write elements and the magnetic field (Write Field) generated from the coil during writing. The result is shown in the graph of FIG. As can be seen, if the distance B between the yokes of the upper and lower write elements is 3.0 [μm] or more, the magnetic field generated from the coil during writing can be kept high, and the pitch can be reduced. The writing characteristics can be suitably maintained while being planned.

  Although the contents of the present invention have been specifically described with reference to the preferred embodiments, various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art based on the basic technical idea and teachings of the present invention. It is self-explanatory.

It is a figure which shows the multichannel head which concerns on this invention. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of an element pair in the head chip according to the embodiment, and is a view in which a view seen from the medium facing surface side and a view seen from the side surface side are shown. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the number of write elements and read elements included in a predetermined dimension in the track width direction with respect to the multi-channel head according to the present embodiment. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the space | interval of the writing element located in the lamination direction upper part, and the reading element which makes it, and BER. It is a figure which shows the relationship of the adjacent writing element from the medium facing surface side and the lamination | stacking surface side about different embodiment of this invention. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the distance between yokes of the upper and lower write elements, and the magnetic field generated from the coil during writing.

Explanation of symbols

1 Multi-channel head 5 Writing element 7 Reading element 11 Substrate

Claims (5)

A substrate, a plurality of write elements arranged in the track width direction above the stacking direction of the substrate, and a plurality of read elements arranged in the track width direction above the stacking direction of the plurality of write elements. A multi-channel head with
The plurality of writing elements include ones whose positions in the stacking direction are shifted,
Each of the plurality of reading elements is disposed above the writing element that is the uppermost in the stacking direction among the plurality of writing elements,
Multi channel head. The plurality of reading elements are aligned in the stacking direction,
The multi-channel head according to claim 1. An interval between the writing element that is the uppermost in the stacking direction among the plurality of write elements and the reading element that is provided above the stacking direction so as to be paired therewith is set to 3.0 [μm] or more. ing,
The multi-channel head according to claim 1 or 2. The inter-yoke distance between adjacent write elements that are shifted in the stacking direction is set to 3.0 [μm] or more.
The multi-channel head according to any one of claims 1 to 3. A substrate, a plurality of write elements arranged in the track width direction above the stacking direction of the substrate, and a plurality of read elements arranged in the track width direction above the stacking direction of the plurality of write elements. A multi-channel head with
The plurality of writing elements include ones whose positions in the stacking direction are shifted,
The inter-yoke distance between adjacent write elements that are shifted in the stacking direction is set to 3.0 [μm] or more.
Multi channel head.

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