JP3325884B2 - Manufacturing method of magnetic head - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to the manufacture of a magnetic head , which is a main component of a magnetic disk drive mainly used as an external storage device such as a computer or a workstation .
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a magnetic head which is particularly excellent in sliding resistance and can reduce wear of a magnetic disk.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Magnetic disks, floppy (registered trademark)
Storage devices using magnetic recording technology, such as disks and magnetic tapes, are widely used as external storage devices such as computers and workstations. I have.

On the other hand, it is desired that the device be smaller and lighter in shape, and it is indispensable to dramatically improve the recording density of a recording medium in order to achieve both. For example, in an apparatus using a magnetic disk (hereinafter, abbreviated as a disk) as a recording medium, a magnetic head (hereinafter, abbreviated as a head) is conventionally floated from the disk with a certain floating space, thereby enabling high-speed read / write. In addition, the wear of the medium caused by the rubbing of the medium by the head is prevented.

However, in order to improve the recording density, the flying space must be further reduced to bring the head closer to the medium, and the head and the disk are displaced due to fluctuations in the head attitude, irregularities on the medium surface, and undulation during rotation. It is expected that the frequency of contact will increase more and more. Further, ultimately, a driving method such as so-called contact recording in which the head and the disk are always in contact with each other is required.

[0005] Furthermore, in order to perform recording and reproduction at a high speed, the rotation speed of the disk becomes higher than the current state. In consideration of the above, it is needless to say that the head and the disk need to be devised so as to prevent wear and damage at the time of such high-speed contact and to keep the friction coefficient low.

In view of the above circumstances, various devices have been conventionally devised to protect the surface of the magnetic recording medium. For example, attempts have been made to cover as a protective film a carbon film, a SiO ₂ film, a ceramic thin film, etc. obtained by sputtering graphite. The purpose of these protective films is mainly to prevent the surface of the magnetic recording medium from being worn and to keep the coefficient of friction when sliding with the head low.

However, as the strength of the magnetic recording medium is increased in order to prevent the abrasion of the magnetic recording medium, the abrasion of the magnetic head which slides with the magnetic recording medium is accelerated, and a large amount of abrasion powder is generated and the head surface shape is changed. As a result, there has been a problem that the reliability of the magnetic recording apparatus itself is not improved as expected.

On the other hand, it is known that a protective layer is provided on a slidable portion also from the viewpoint of improving the sliding resistance of a magnetic head. For example, JP-A-56-107326 discloses a resin made of polyvinyl alkyl ether. It is shown that a layer is provided. Such a thing is of course conceivable, but in practice, the slider surface of the head is always in contact with the disk surface except during flying, and the degree of wear is so great that the above-mentioned protective layer wears away immediately. As a result, not only the protection effect is lost, but also the abrasion powder generated thereby adheres to the disk or the head, causing a crash, which is not practical.

It has also been proposed to coat the sliding surface of the head core with an amorphous carbon film, a diamond-structured carbon film, or a carbon film made of a mixture thereof as a protective film. JP 6
0-193112, JP-A-63-58613, JP-A-63-222314, and the like.

Although the carbon film used as the protective film has excellent film strength as compared with the former case in which the resin layer is provided, the wear resistance is still insufficient for practical use. There have been problems such as being insufficient or causing abrasion powder during sliding and causing a crash.

In particular, the above-mentioned known examples are all formed for the purpose of protecting the element portion of the head, and are formed so as to cover the surface of the element. Therefore, in order to obtain a sufficient life, the protective layer has to be thickened, and if it is thickened, the gap between the head element and the recording medium is widened, so that a high recording density cannot be obtained.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the problems in the case where a conventional carbon film is used as a protective film, and to prevent damage to sliding portions of both a head and a magnetic disk. The manufacture of an improved magnetic head that prevents and reduces the change in the coefficient of friction during sliding
It is to provide a manufacturing method .

[0013]

[0014]

In order to achieve the above object, the slider sliding portion on which the magnetic head is mounted has high abrasion resistance even with an ultra-thin film, hardly generates abrasion powder, and has little damage to the recording medium. It is preferable to form a protective layer using such a material.

For example, in the case of a fixed magnetic disk drive having a floating type head in which the head floats on a rotating disk , the head and the disk slide at a high speed of 20 to 40 m / sec when the device is started and stopped. In operation, it floats with a narrow space of 0.1 to 0.3 μm. Therefore, the protective layer must have such a thickness that does not greatly affect the space between the floating portions, and furthermore, the characteristics must not be deteriorated by abrasion even if the sliding is repeated tens of thousands of times.

Providing a protective layer on the sliding portion of the head is not easily realized only because there is no suitable protective layer material satisfying the above conditions. The present inventors have attempted coating with various materials, and as a result of various experimental studies, have found that a specific carbon-based protective film is suitable for the above purpose.

The present invention has been made based on such knowledge, and specific means for achieving the object will be sequentially described below.

An object of the present invention is to provide a magnetic recording / reproducing element.
The mounted slider flies above the rotating magnetic disk
Method of manufacturing a floating type magnetic head.
Forming an amorphous carbon thin film on the slider
Having a predetermined width and interval on the amorphous carbon thin film
Forming a lattice-shaped mask; and
Processing the amorphous carbon thin film other than the area covered with
Manufacturing a magnetic head, comprising:
Achieved by law . And, the amorphous carbon thin film
Processing is preferably done in an oxygen plasma atmosphere
No.

What is important here is that the non-
Forming a crystalline carbon thin film on the sliding part of the slider.
You. For this purpose, a carbon thin film formed on the sliding part of the slider
On top, for example, a resist film is provided, and photolithography is performed.
Patterning of the resist by using
After forming a mask, the amorphous portion of the part without the resist mask
Selectively etch carbon thin film with oxygen plasma, for example.
To process the carbon thin film by removing the carbon .

[0020]

[0021]

Here, the findings obtained by the present inventors regarding the carbon thin film characteristic of the present invention will be described in more detail as follows.

With respect to the above - mentioned amorphous carbon thin film, hydrocarbon gas is decomposed in a plasma, especially among carbon-based thin films.
It has been found that an amorphous hydrogenated carbon film formed by deposition on a substrate to which a negative bias voltage is applied is good. This is a well-known film forming technique called plasma CVD. Similarly, a so-called ion beam deposition, which ionizes hydrocarbons and attracts them to a substrate to which a negative bias voltage is applied to form films, is also effective. Was. The materials obtained by these film forming methods have properties most suitable for the present invention such that they have high hardness, are hardly cracked, have a low coefficient of friction, and hardly generate abrasion powder. Further, since the abrasion speed is extremely low, even a very thin film can exert a great effect.

The amorphous hydrogenated carbon film contains an appropriate amount of hydrogen as described above. The hydrogen content is controlled by controlling the CVD conditions, for example, the pressure of the raw material gas, the electric power applied when generating plasma, and the like. It can be easily done if properly controlled. Hydrogen is considered to have the effect of decomposing and desorbing most when hydrocarbons are decomposed into a carbon film, but partly trapped in the film and bonding to the end of the carbon chain to stabilize the film. Can be

The carbon thin film having the fine uneven surface is preferably the above - mentioned amorphous hydrogenated carbon thin film, but is not limited thereto, and may be, for example, a carbon-based thin film containing diamond microcrystals. What is important is to form a carbon-based thin film having fine irregularities on the sliding portion.

The fine irregularities formed in this way have the effect of reducing the contact area between the head and the disk and reducing the coefficient of friction. About the degree of this fine unevenness
Has an average roughness (Ra) of about 2 to 50 nm, a maximum projection height of 100 nm or less, and an average distance between adjacent projections of 10 to 1000 nm. If the average roughness is higher or the maximum protrusion height is higher, the disc may be damaged. If the average roughness is smaller than the above, the effect of reducing the friction coefficient is reduced.

The method of providing the head sliding portion with irregularities includes forming a deposit having fine irregularities composed of diamond microcrystals by a vapor phase epitaxy method, and forming an amorphous carbon thin film on the slider sliding portion of the head. After forming a resist film on this carbon thin film, patterning the resist by photolithography to form a fine mask, and forming a non-resist maskless portion of the amorphous carbon film with, for example, oxygen plasma For example, it may be selectively etched away.

According to this selective etching method by lithography, it is possible to form irregularities of a desired shape. For example, forming a lattice-like unevenness in the head sliding direction is advantageous in that the damage to the disk is small and the disk is rotated at a high speed.

Further , when the grid-like irregularities are formed at an angle of 30 ° or less, preferably 5 to 30 ° with respect to the sliding direction of the slider, there is an effect of removing and removing dirt such as fine powder generated by the sliding. Further, the reliability is improved.

Further, the friction coefficient at the time of sliding is further reduced.
For this purpose, it is preferable to apply a lubricant to the head sliding portion .
This lubricant has a main chain composed of, for example, perfluoropolyether or perfluoroalkyl, and at least one terminal is substituted with a polar group such as an ether group, an ester group, a hydroxyl group, a carbonyl group, an amino group, or an amide group. It is best to use one having a molecular weight of about 1,000 to 10,000. In addition, saturated fatty acids and their derivatives, higher alcohols and their derivatives, and the like can also be used.

[0031]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [Specific Description of Magnetic Head] Next, a specific structure of a magnetic head according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 schematically shows a perspective view of the structure of a magnetic head according to the present invention as viewed from the bottom surface of a slider.
The slider body 1 of the head is made of a material such as zirconia oxide, alumina-containing titanium carbide, or ferrite, and two slider sliding portions 2 are formed by machining or etching.

A recording / reproducing element 3 for converting a magnetic signal into an electric signal is provided on the rear side surface of the slider sliding portion 2 in close proximity to the sliding surface, but slightly recedes from the sliding surface to form a non-sliding surface. Formed, arranged and mounted. The slider sliding portion 2 has a sled shape, and the leading portion 2a and the trailing portion 2b are tapered so that the edge does not hit when the head is running. The protective layer 4 made of carbon, which is a feature of the present invention, is provided on the sliding surface of the hatched portion in the figure.

[0034] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the head rear surface covering the sliding surface of the slider sliding portion 2 in the carbon protective layer 4 shows schematically, FIG. 2 (a) above amorphous examples example of forming a carbon protective film, FIG. 2 (b) forming a carbon protective layer having fine asperities as described above, FIG. 2 (c) above
Example of forming a carbon protective layer having a longitudinal direction uniform grid-like fine irregularities of the lattice in the sliding direction of the slider as, FIG. 2 (d) also sliding of the slider the direction of the grating as described above This is an example in which an angle θ within 30 ° with respect to the moving direction is formed.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line XX 'of FIG. 1 in which a carbon protective layer 4 is formed on the sliding surface of the slider sliding portion 2. FIG. 3 (a) shows a uniform thickness. 3 (b) shows a case where a film having fine irregularities is provided, FIG. 3 (c) shows a case where a particulate deposit 5 is provided, and FIG. 3 (d) shows a particulate deposit. In this case, a protective film 4 having a uniform thickness is provided on the protective film 5.

FIGS. 4 (a) to 4 (d) correspond to FIGS.
FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view when a lubricating layer 6 is further provided on (d).

In the above example, the slider sliding portion 2 is
Although the thin-film magnetic head having the present invention has been described, the present invention is of course not limited to this type of head, and any type of head having a structure in which sliding and contact between the head and the recording medium occur is applicable. effective.

The protective film according to the present invention is a hard and amorphous thin film mainly composed of carbon.
When formed to the above thickness, the micro Vickers hardness becomes about 1500 Hv or more and the density becomes 1.7 to 2.4. When hydrogen is contained, the atomic number ratio is 3
-30 atomic%. Coatings outside the above range are not preferred because they are soft, have a high wear rate, or are brittle and fragile. The carbon thin film can be formed, for example, by the following method.

[Description of Specific Example of Forming Carbon Thin Film on Head] -1). A hydrocarbon gas is used alone or mixed with another gas to form a raw material, plasma is generated, and CVD (chemical vapor deposition) is performed under conditions such that the substrate surface has a potential drop of 100 V or more with respect to the plasma potential. Most simply, the substrate to be processed is one electrode, and a commercial high frequency (13.56 MHz) is placed between the substrate and an electrode sufficiently larger than this area.
It is preferable to form a film by applying a high-frequency voltage such as that described above, generating plasma, and accelerating ions by a self-bias voltage generated near the substrate. FIG. 5A shows an example of an apparatus used in this method.

-2). A hydrocarbon gas is used alone or as a mixture with another gas to produce a raw material. This gas is ionized in an ionization chamber, and the generated ions are accelerated to about 100 to 1000 V by an electric field to collide with a substrate. FIG. 5B shows an example of an apparatus used in this method.

The following methods are well-known for growing the above-mentioned deposits containing diamond microcrystals, and the following methods are selected from these methods in consideration of the production rate, the upper limit of the settable substrate temperature, and the like. Is good.

-3). Microwave plasma is generated mainly using a mixed gas of a hydrocarbon gas and hydrogen as a raw material, and the substrate is heated to 200 ° C. to 700 ° C. When a magnetic field is applied to the above-described plasma region and the treatment is performed under conditions that cause a phenomenon called electron cyclotron resonance, the plasma density increases, and the growth rate of diamond particles can be increased. Although the growth rate is lower than the above, high-frequency plasma or DC plasma may be used instead of the microwave plasma. FIG. 5C shows an example of an apparatus used in this method.

-4). The substrate is heated to about 700 ° C. to 1000 ° C., a mixed gas of hydrocarbon gas and hydrogen gas is introduced, and diamond particles are generated on the substrate surface by a thermal reaction.

-5). A mixed gas of a hydrocarbon gas and a hydrogen gas is maintained at a pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure, and a raw material gas is reacted by utilizing a thermoelectron generated by applying a current to a filament such as tungsten arranged close to the substrate.

-6). Ionize hydrocarbon molecules, 30
The substrate is caused to collide with an energy of 0 V to 2000 V.

-7). The substrate is placed at the reducing flame portion of the hydrocarbon gas combustion flame under atmospheric pressure, and diamond particles are generated on the substrate surface.

Actually, since the heat resistance of the element of the magnetic head may be low, it is preferable that the magnetic head can be formed at a temperature as low as possible, and the microwave CVD method of -3) is most suitable.

In the above-mentioned method, amorphous carbon is often formed simultaneously with diamond in addition to the diamond. This is because amorphous carbon often has a low density and is brittle. Unlike amorphous carbon containing an appropriate amount of characteristic hydrogen, it may have an adverse effect on the improvement of the sliding resistance intended in the present invention in some cases. Therefore, in such a case, it is better to remove the amorphous portion by ashing or etching with O ₂ or H ₂ plasma.

The raw material used in the above-mentioned method for producing an amorphous carbon thin film or a carbon thin film containing diamond particles is a hydrocarbon compound mainly composed of carbon and hydrogen, and may contain oxygen and other atoms.

Specifically, methane, ethane, propane,
Saturated hydrocarbons such as butane, pentane and hexane; unsaturated hydrocarbons such as ethylene, acetylene, propene and butene; aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene, toluene and xylene; alcohols such as methanol, ethanol and propanol; Ketones such as acetaldehyde, acetone and methyl ethyl ketone, and ethers such as dimethyl ether, methyl ethyl ether and diethyl ether are used.

A mixed gas of two or more of these, or a mixed gas with Xr, Ar, He, Ne, O ₂ , H ₂ O, N 2, etc. may be used. Further, a hydrocarbon molecule in which some of the hydrogen atoms in the above-described hydrocarbon molecule have been replaced with fluorine can also be used.

If the thickness of the thin film mainly composed of amorphous carbon or the deposit containing diamond microcrystals is too large, the substantial distance between the head and the magnetic layer is increased and the S / N ratio is increased.
Is preferably 50 nm or less, since this causes a decrease in On the other hand, if the thickness is too thin, the effect is reduced due to abrasion.

[Specific Example of Forming Lubricating Film on Head] In order to realize the above-described head, there are the following methods for applying a lubricant to the protective film of the sliding portion of the head slider.

-1). A dip method in which the head is immersed in a solution in which lubricant molecules are dissolved, held for a certain period of time, and then pulled up.

-2). A spray method in which a solution of lubricant molecules is sprayed to evaporate the solvent.

-3). A vapor deposition method in which lubricant molecules are vaporized in a vacuum chamber and vapor-deposited on the surface of the head slider.

Of course, the method is not limited to these methods. If the amount of the lubricant is too large, it collects at the contact portion between the head and the magnetic recording medium, causing an adhesion phenomenon that fixes the head, and if the amount is small, the lubricating action is reduced, so that it is necessary to control the amount within a range. is there. This amount depends on the type and molecular weight of the lubricant, but is generally 1 to 50 nm, preferably 2 to 10 nm in terms of film thickness.

Further, a lubricant molecule having a highly polarizable group such as a carbonyl group, a carboxyl group, an ester group, an ether bond, an amide group, an amino group, a hydroxyl group at the terminal or in the molecular chain is used. A
When a small amount of a metal such as l, Fe, Ni, Co, or Ag or a compound thereof is present, a strong bond can be formed between the protective layer and the lubricant, and the sticking phenomenon can be reduced.

[Formation of Carbon Thin Film on Magnetic Disk] In order to further improve the sliding reliability of the magnetic disk, a protective film of the same quality as the specific protective film applied to the magnetic head of the present invention should be used. It is good to provide as.
Particularly preferred is an amorphous hydrogenated carbon film formed by the same method as that used for the protective film of the magnetic head.
Further, if a lubricating layer is provided on this protective film, the reliability can be further improved. The same material and method for forming the lubricating layer can be used as those described for the magnetic head.

The reason that the reliability of the magnetic disk drive is improved by the present invention is as follows. When a magnetic disk fails, the disk side is almost completely damaged. This is because the mechanical strength of the magnetic recording medium is low. For this reason, a contrivance has been made to provide a protective layer having high wear resistance or a lubricating layer.

However, the present inventors consider that the role or influence of the magnetic head on the sliding of the magnetic head and the magnetic disk is great, and it is necessary to make the part where the magnetic head slides on the magnetic disk also an appropriate material and shape. I thought there was. This is because it depends on the contact area between the magnetic head and the magnetic disk that occurs during sliding. Before sliding, a relatively small contact area due to fine irregularities on the surface increases due to abrasion along with the sliding. This is because it is considered that the frictional force is increased, which may lead to a head crash.

That is, by preventing the wear of the magnetic head, the change in frictional force is reduced, damage on the magnetic disk side is suppressed, and reliability should be improved. To achieve this, a protective layer with high wear resistance is required, and the present inventors have compared and examined various materials and found that a specific carbon-based material was superior. The specific carbon-based material is a deposit containing amorphous carbon and diamond crystallites as described above. These have the following characteristics, which are considered to be acting to improve the sliding resistance.

That is, (a) the hardness is high (Vickers hardness is 1500 to 5000). (B) Large abrasion powder is hardly generated during sliding. (C) It does not easily adhere to the sliding partner material.

In the present invention, both the magnetic head and the magnetic disk are provided with a homogeneous carbon-based protective film on their sliding surfaces. Generally, in the field of friction wear, a combination of materials of the same quality, which is called so-called warp, promotes wear. However, only the carbon-based material of the present invention has a synergistic effect with a material of the same quality, and it has been found that the wear resistance is dramatically improved. This is considered to be due to the fact that the adhesion phenomenon, which is generally a problem in sliding between similar materials, is unlikely to occur due to the characteristics of the carbon-based material.

The present invention can be used to improve performance other than the sliding reliability of the magnetic disk drive. That is,
If the wear on the magnetic head side is reduced, the above-mentioned increase in frictional force can be prevented without making the surface on the magnetic disk side rough by increasing the surface roughness of the sliding portion of the magnetic head. Therefore, the surface of the magnetic disk can be smoothed, the flying height of the magnetic head can be reduced, and the recording density and S / N can be improved.

Further, since the wear of the magnetic head and the magnetic disk is greatly reduced by the present invention, severe conditions such as so-called contact recording, in which recording and reproduction are performed in a state where the magnetic head and the magnetic disk are in constant or intermittent contact. It can be suitably used under the conditions.

[0067]

The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the following examples. <Example 1> A wafer having a thickness of 4 mm made of a material having high magnetic permeability such as zirconia oxide was prepared, and a core material and a coil were formed on the surface by using a thin film forming process such as vacuum evaporation, plating, and sputtering and a photolithography process. Form necessary patterns such as materials, electrodes, and protective layers. The thin-film magnetic head element 3 formed in this manner was cut out from the wafer, and the head body 1 having the shape shown in FIG. 1 was formed by machining.

Next, the sliding surface of the slider sliding portion 2 was mirror-polished, and the tapered portion 2a and the side edge portion 2b were chamfered to form a sled-shaped sliding portion 2. After cleaning the head main body 1 to remove processing residues, the slider sliding portion is placed face up on an electrode on the biased side of the internal electrode type high frequency plasma generator as shown in FIG. Is introduced at a flow rate of 50 sccm and the gas pressure is 50 mTo.
The pumping speed was adjusted to be rr.

After the gas pressure in the reaction chamber is stabilized, a high-frequency voltage is applied, and the standing wave ratio SW is set so that the reflected power is minimized.
R (Standing WaveRatio) matching adjustment was performed and left for 1 minute at an effective power of 1 kW. As a result, an amorphous hydrogenated carbon film having a hydrogen content of about 10 atomic% and a thickness of 20 nm was formed on the slider sliding surface.

The magnetic head manufactured in this manner was combined with a magnetic disk on which a carbon protective film was formed by sputtering and assembled into a CSS tester, and a load of 1
Rotate the disc by applying 0 g, and once the head floats, loosen the rotation and bring the head and the disc into contact again,
A so-called CSS test in which a cycle of stopping the rotation was repeated was performed to evaluate the change in the frictional force (gf) generated in the head and the degree of damage to the head and the disk after the 30k tests.

For comparison, the same test was performed on a head on which a sputtered carbon film containing no hydrogen was formed. The results are as shown in Table 1. The increase in the frictional force was small and the sliding surfaces of the head and the disk were slightly damaged as compared with the case where sputtered carbon was formed. FIG. 6 shows the dependence of the frictional force applied to the head on the number of times of sliding in the CSS test. As shown in the figure, the difference between the two characteristics becomes clear as the number of CSS increases. <Examples 2 to 7> A magnetic head on which an amorphous carbon protective film was formed was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1, and a CSS test was performed by combining this with a magnetic disk as described below. As shown in Table 1, the increase in the frictional force (gf) was small, and the damage to the sliding surfaces of the head and the disk was also slight. As is clear from the comparison between Examples 1 and 3, the type of the protective film of the disk coated with the same amorphous carbon as that of the head side has remarkably improved characteristics.
As shown in (1), when the lubricant film is coated, it is further improved.

[0072]

[Table 1]

Example 8 The hydrogen content in the amorphous hydrogenated carbon thin film was changed by controlling the input power, gas flow rate, etc., when forming the amorphous hydrogenated carbon thin film of Example 1. The relationship between the amount of hydrogen and the strength (expressed in hardness) of the thin film was examined.

FIG. 8 (a) shows the relationship between the input electric power and the hydrogen content, and FIG. 8 (b) shows the relationship between the gas flow rate and the hydrogen content. Control of the amount is possible.

FIG. 9 is a characteristic diagram showing the relationship between the hydrogen content and the strength (expressed in hardness) of the carbon thin film.
It turns out that it is preferable at 15 atomic%. <Examples 9 to 15> In the same process as in Example 1, first, a wafer of zirconia oxide was prepared as a material constituting the slider, and necessary patterns such as a core material and a coil material, an electrode, and a protective layer were formed on the surface thereof. Then, the element is cut out from the wafer and formed into a head shape by machining. Then, the sliding surface of the slider sliding portion 2 is mirror-polished, and the tapered portion 2a and the side edge portion 2b are chamfered. Was prepared.

After the head main body 1 was washed to remove processing residues, the head was placed in a vacuum chamber of a magnetic field microwave plasma generator as shown in FIG. Is heated to 250 ° C., a mixed gas of methane and hydrogen having a mixing ratio of 2:98 is introduced at a flow rate of 100 sccm, and the gas pressure is set to 100 mTo.
The pumping speed was adjusted to be rr.

After the gas pressure in the reaction chamber was stabilized, a current was passed through the coil for generating a magnetic field, and a microwave of 500 W was introduced to generate plasma. After 5 minutes, the microwave was stopped, the vacuum chamber was opened to the atmosphere, and the head body was taken out. As a result, a deposit having fine irregularities was formed on the slider sliding surface.

This was analyzed by Raman scattering spectrum and thin film X
Analysis by line diffraction confirmed that diamond fine particles and amorphous carbon were mixed. In addition, the surface shape has an average thickness of 20 nm and an average roughness Ra of 10 nm.
It turned out to be. The amount of hydrogen contained in the amorphous carbon was about 7 atomic%.

On the other hand, the same magnetic disks as those of Examples 1 to 7 in Table 1 were prepared. Using the magnetic head and the magnetic disk thus manufactured, a CSS test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1, and the frictional force (g
The change in f) and the degree of damage to the head and the disk after 30k tests were evaluated. The results are as shown in Table 2. The increase in the frictional force was small and the sliding surfaces of the head and the disk were slightly damaged as compared with Examples 1 to 7 in Table 1.

[0080]

[Table 2]

<Embodiment 16> In the same process as in Embodiment 1,
First, a wafer of zirconia oxide was prepared as a material constituting the slider, and necessary patterns such as a core material and a coil material, an electrode, and a protective layer were formed on this surface, and the element was cut out from the wafer and formed into a head shape by machining. Later
The sliding surface of the slider sliding portion 2 is mirror-polished, and the tapered portion 2a
And the side edge portion 2b are chamfered to form the head body 1
Was prepared.

After cleaning the head main body 1 to remove processing residues, the slider sliding portion is placed face up on the electrode on the biased side of the internal electrode type high frequency plasma generator in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Was introduced at a flow rate of 50 sccm, and the pumping speed was adjusted so that the gas pressure became 50 mTorr. When the slider was left for 1 minute at an effective power of 1 kW, an amorphous hydrogenated carbon film (hydrogen content: about 10 atomic%) having a thickness of 20 nm was formed on the slider surface.

A positive resist having a thickness of 200 nm is applied on the carbon thin film formed in this manner, dried, and then irradiated with ultraviolet rays through a mask master having a lattice pattern having a width of 1 μm and an interval of 5 μm. Thus, a resist mask pattern having the above dimensions was formed by performing exposure and development rinsing.

Next, the magnetic head was put into the plasma generator again with the slider sliding portion side facing up, oxygen gas was introduced, the gas pressure was maintained at 0.2 Torr, and 500 W
For 2 minutes. This selectively etches the exposed portion of the carbon film without the resist,
A pattern of a carbon thin film having the lattice mask dimension was formed. Then, the resist mask was peeled off, and Example 1 was removed.
A CSS test was performed in combination with a magnetic disk provided with a sputtered carbon protective film in the same manner as described above.

As a result, the increase in the coefficient of friction was 3 g or less even after the 30k tests, the increase in the frictional force was small,
Damage to the sliding surface of the disk was also slight.

A pattern of a carbon thin film having a grid-like mask dimension provided on a head slider sliding portion was prepared by matching the direction of the grid with the sliding direction of the slider sliding portion, and was inclined at an angle θ from the sliding direction. When the sliding characteristics were measured and the sliding characteristics were matched with each other, the damage to the disk was small, which was advantageous for high-speed rotation, and within 30 °, preferably 5 °. ~
When the angle is 30 °, it has been found that the inclination is more effective for removing dirt adhering to the head and more effective for improving the reliability. <Embodiment 17> Using the combinations of the magnetic heads and the magnetic disks implemented in Embodiments 1 to 7 and 9 to 16, ten magnetic disks were mounted on a spindle at regular intervals as shown in FIG. The magnetic disk drive was assembled by mounting the magnetic head positioning mechanism and the signal recording / reproducing circuit board one by one on each surface of the magnetic disk. By operating this device, the flying height of the magnetic head was 0.1μ.
m, and a life test was performed in which a cycle of writing signals to all tracks and sequentially reading signals was performed continuously.

After continuous operation for 5000 hours, the apparatus was disassembled and the surfaces of the magnetic head and the magnetic disk were observed with an optical microscope. The taper portion 2a of the slider sliding portion of the magnetic head was found to be very slightly contaminated. There was,
Other than that, no scratches or deposits were observed on both the magnetic head and the magnetic disk.

For comparison, a magnetic head having a carbon protective film formed by sputtering on a slider sliding surface using a graphite plate as a target was incorporated into each device one by one.
This head had several flaws in the sliding direction, and had a lot of deposits. Also, a lot of dirt adheres to the magnetic disk,
Some crashed. This carbon protective film does not contain hydrogen. <Embodiment 18> The magnetic disk drive used in Embodiment 17 was used to adjust the head load and the number of revolutions so that the magnetic head could almost continuously hit the surface of the magnetic disk (referred to as contact recording). The same test as in Example 17 was performed.

After a continuous 2000 hour test, the device was disassembled and the magnetic head and magnetic disk were examined for damage.
Several minor wear marks were observed on the magnetic disk side that could be discriminated by an optical microscope, but the wear was only on the protective film and did not reach the magnetic recording medium. In the same apparatus, the magnetic disk assembled with the magnetic head (sputtered carbon film) of the comparative example shown in Example 17 crashed, and the scratches on the magnetic head side were large.

[0090]

As described above, according to the present invention, not only the magnetic head but also the anti-sliding characteristics of the magnetic disk can be improved, which has a great effect on extending the life of the magnetic disk device. Further, since the required reliability can be ensured even if the flying space between the magnetic disk and the magnetic head is reduced, the recording density of the magnetic disk can be further improved.

Although the description has been limited to the magnetic disk, the present invention can be used in exactly the same manner as long as the storage device performs recording and reproduction using a head, and it is possible to realize a long life. Needless to say. Such examples include, for example, a magnetic tape, a floppy disk, and a magneto-optical disk using a flying head.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a magnetic head according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view in which a carbon thin film is formed on a sliding surface of the magnetic head according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a magnetic head sliding portion according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a magnetic head sliding portion according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a film forming apparatus for forming a carbon thin film.

FIG. 6 is a characteristic curve diagram showing a result of a CSS test using the magnetic head of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a sketch drawing showing the structure of the magnetic disk drive of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a characteristic curve diagram showing one example of controlling the hydrogen content in the carbon thin film.

FIG. 9 is a characteristic curve diagram showing a relationship between a hydrogen content in a carbon thin film and hardness.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Head main body, 2 ... Slider sliding part, 3 ... Recording / reproducing element, 4 ... Protective film.

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Kazunari Takemoto 292 Yoshida-cho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside Hitachi, Ltd. Production Technology Research Institute (72) Inventor Ryo Kito 292 Yoshida-cho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa, Inc. (56) References JP-A-1-189019 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G11B 5/60 G11B 21/21

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A method for manufacturing a floating type magnetic head in which a slider on which a magnetic recording / reproducing element is mounted floats on a rotating magnetic disk, comprising: forming an amorphous carbon thin film on the slider; Forming a lattice-shaped mask having a predetermined width and interval on the amorphous carbon thin film, and processing the amorphous carbon thin film other than a region covered by the mask. A method for manufacturing a magnetic head, comprising: 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the processing of the amorphous carbon thin film is performed in an oxygen plasma atmosphere.