JPH10172124A - Production of floating magnetic head - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain smooth air bearing surfaces free from projections when recording and reproducing head parts are formed on the flanks of sliders having the air bearing surfaces consisting of prescribed rugged patterns. SOLUTION: Resist patterns 41 meeting the rugged patterns or the air bearing surfaces are formed on the surface of a substrate 3 formed with the recording and reproducing head parts 16 and thereafter, the surface of the substrate 3 is subjected to ion beam etching via the resist patterns 41. Next, the surface of the substrate 3 is immersed into an acidic treating liquid 5 to dissolve and remove the unnecessary deposits formed on the surface of the substrate 3. The resist patterns 41 are then removed from the surface of the substrate 3. Finally, the substrate 3 is sliced by each of the recording and reproducing head parts 16, by which the floating type thin-film magnetic heads are completed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a floating magnetic head mounted on a signal recording / reproducing apparatus such as a hard disk drive.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, a floating type thin film magnetic head provided in a hard disk drive device has an air bearing surface S formed on a surface of a slider (1) and a signal surface formed on a side surface thereof as shown in FIG. A recording / reproducing head section (16) comprising an inductive head element (11) for recording and an MR (magnetoresistive) head element (12) for signal reproduction is formed. Each head element (11) (12) of the recording / reproducing head section (16) is connected to a pair of bump layers (13) (13) via two terminal layers (14) (14), respectively. Also, both head elements (11) (1
2) and terminal layer (14) are covered by a protective layer (15),
Each bump layer (13) is exposed from the protective layer (15). In the air bearing surface S of the slider (1), a plurality of grooves (10) extending in the direction of air flow are recessed, thereby forming a pair of left and right side rails (17) (17). .

The above-mentioned floating type thin film magnetic head is arranged so that the air bearing surface S is opposed to the signal surface of the rotating disk, and is generated between a pair of side rails (17) and (17) and the rotating disk. It is held at a position floating above the signal surface of the disk by air pressure, and performs signal recording and reproduction.

In the manufacturing process of the above-mentioned floating type thin film magnetic head, as shown in FIG. 1A, a plurality of head portions (16) are formed on a side surface of a substrate (3) serving as a slider. As shown in FIG. 2B, a resist layer (4) is formed on the surface of the substrate (3).
The resist layer (4) is exposed and developed to form a resist pattern (41) corresponding to the concavo-convex pattern on the air bearing surface S as shown in FIG. And
By performing ion beam etching on the surface of the substrate (3) using the resist pattern (41) as a mask, FIG.
The multiple grooves (10) shown in the figure are recessed, and the side rails (17) (17)
Is formed.

[0005]

However, in the conventional manufacturing method, in the process of performing the ion beam etching on the surface of the substrate (3), especially, in order to increase the etching rate, as shown in FIG. Is inclined with respect to the substrate normal (for example, the inclination angle θ =
(40 ° to 60 °), constituent molecules on the substrate surface (for example, aluminum) are repelled by ion beam irradiation,
These molecules adhere from the side surface of the groove (10) to the side surface of the resist pattern (41), or penetrate between the substrate surface and the resist pattern (41) as shown in FIG. )
Is formed. Such deposits (6) cannot be removed in the subsequent cleaning step using a brush or ultrasonic waves, and remain as projections on the air bearing surface of the thin film magnetic head as a final product. There is a problem that the signal surface of the recording medium is damaged or the flying characteristics are adversely affected.

Therefore, the present inventors have studied a method of dissolving and removing the deposits finally remaining on the air bearing surface with an acidic processing liquid. However, the acidic processing liquid is applied to the surface of the recording / reproducing head (16) facing the recording medium (hereinafter, referred to as the recording / reproducing head (16)).
The recording / reproducing head (16)
There is a problem that damages.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a floating magnetic head capable of easily removing unnecessary deposits caused by ion beam etching without damaging a recording / reproducing head. .

[0008]

A method of manufacturing a flying magnetic head according to the present invention has the following first to sixth steps. In the first step, a substrate (3) to be a slider (1)
The head part (16) is formed on the side surface of the. In the second step, a resist layer (4) is formed on the surface of the substrate (3) to be the air bearing surface S.
To form Subsequently, in a third step, the resist layer (4) is exposed and developed to form a resist pattern (41) corresponding to the concavo-convex pattern on the air bearing surface S. In the fourth step, the surface of the substrate (3) is subjected to ion beam etching via the resist pattern (41). Thereafter, in a fifth step, the surface of the substrate (3) is immersed in the acidic treatment liquid (5). Then, in a sixth step, the resist pattern (41) is removed from the surface of the substrate (3). As the acidic treatment liquid (5), for example, a solution of hydrofluoric acid can be used.

In the above-mentioned manufacturing method, the deposit (6) is formed on the surface of the substrate (3) in the same manner as in the prior art by the fourth step. Is immersed in an acidic treatment liquid (5) to dissolve and remove the deposit (6). Here, since the medium facing surface of the recording / reproducing head section (16) is covered with the resist pattern (41), the medium facing surface is not eroded by the acidic processing liquid (5).

More specifically, in the first step, an MR head element (12) and an inductive head element (11) are laminated on the side surface of the substrate (3), and then these head elements are covered. Protective layer
Form (15). According to the specific process, since the surfaces of the MR head element (12) and the inductive head element (11) are covered with the protective layer (15), the surfaces of both head elements (12) and (11) are acidic. It is not eroded by the treatment liquid (5).

[0011]

According to the method of manufacturing a flying magnetic head according to the present invention, unnecessary deposits caused by ion beam etching can be easily removed without damaging the recording / reproducing head. This forms a smooth air bearing surface.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a flying type thin film magnetic head shown in FIG. 3 will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. The structure of the flying type thin film magnetic head shown in FIG. 3 is the same as that of the conventional structure and has already been described, so that the description is omitted here.

FIGS. 1A to 1C and FIGS. 2A to 2D show the steps of manufacturing the above-mentioned flying type thin film magnetic head. First, a substrate made of Al ₂ O ₃ -TiC, as shown in FIG. 1 (a)
On the side surface of (3), an inductive head element and an MR head element are laminated by a known thin film forming technique to form a recording / reproducing head section (16) composed of both head elements and a plurality of heads used for connection to an external circuit. The bump layer (13) is formed. After that, covering the recording / reproducing head part (16) and the bump layer (13),
A protective layer (not shown) made of Al ₂ O ₃ is formed. Incidentally, the bump layer (13) is obtained by subjecting the protective layer to surface polishing.
Expose the surface.

Next, as shown in FIG. 1 (b), after forming a resist layer (4) on the surface of the substrate (3), the resist layer (4) is exposed and developed, and As shown in c), a resist pattern (41) corresponding to the concave / convex pattern on the air bearing surface is formed.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 2A, the surface of the substrate (3) is irradiated with an ion beam through the resist pattern (41) to perform etching to a predetermined depth. At this time, the irradiation direction of the ion beam is inclined with respect to the perpendicular to the substrate as necessary. As a result, the surface of the substrate (3) is
As shown in (b), a groove (10) having a predetermined depth (for example, 3 μm) is formed in a region exposed from the resist pattern (41). In addition, FIG.
As shown in (a) and (b), it is inevitable that a deposit (6) containing aluminum as a main component is formed on the side surface of the groove (10).

Next, as shown in FIG.
The head block (2) is immersed in (5). Acid treatment solution
As (5), a 1% hydrofluoric acid solution at 23 ° C. was used, and the immersion time was set to 1 minute. Thus, the deposit (6) shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B is dissolved and completely removed. At this time, the recording / reproducing head (1) of the head block (2)
The medium facing surface of (6) is covered with a resist pattern (41), and the surface of the recording / reproducing head (16) is covered with a protective layer. ) Is not eroded.

The surface of the bump layer (13) is exposed from the protective layer. However, since the bump layer (13) is formed of a metal having a very low ionization tendency, such as gold, an acid treatment solution is used.
There is no danger of erosion due to (5). Further, the inner surface of the groove (10) of the substrate (3) is slightly eroded by the acidic processing liquid (5), but does not come into contact with the medium facing surface, so there is no problem.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 2D, the resist pattern (41) on the head block (2) is removed with a suitable solvent. As a result, a predetermined concavo-convex pattern including the groove (10) and the ridge (31) is formed on the surface of the head block (2). Finally, the head block (2) is sliced along the dashed line in the figure, and the obtained head chip is washed with a suitable detergent. As a result, the composite thin film magnetic head shown in FIG. 3 is completed.

The graphs of FIGS. 5A and 5B show the air flow for the floating type thin film magnetic head obtained by the manufacturing method of the present invention and the floating type thin film magnetic head obtained by the conventional manufacturing method. It shows the result of scanning the bearing surface with a stylus type step meter and measuring the shape of the step between the groove (10) and the side rail (17). In the conventional example shown in FIG. 5A, a bump having a height of about 0.1 to 0.3 μm appears as shown by A in FIG. You can see that there is. In contrast, FIG.
In the example of the present invention shown in (b), it can be seen that the step S does not have a bump as in the prior art, and that the attached matter has been removed.

As described above, according to the method of manufacturing a flying magnetic head according to the present invention, the resist pattern (41) is removed from the head block (2) on which the deposit (6) is formed by ion beam etching. Previously, a process of dissolving and removing the adhered substance (6) by immersion in an acidic treatment liquid (5) was adopted, so that a smooth air bearing was provided without damaging the recording / reproducing head (16). Can form a surface,
It is possible to improve the reliability and yield of the magnetic head.

The description of the above embodiments is for the purpose of describing the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the invention described in the claims or reducing the scope thereof.
In addition, the configuration of each part of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that various modifications can be made within the technical scope described in the claims. For example, the acidic treatment liquid (5) is not limited to a solution of hydrofluoric acid, but may be a solution of nitric acid, hydrochloric acid, phosphoric acid, or the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a process diagram showing a first half of a manufacturing process of a flying magnetic head according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a process chart showing the latter half of the above process.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a flying type thin film magnetic head.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a deposit is formed.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing a result of measuring a shape of a step portion on an air bearing surface.

[Explanation of symbols]

 (1) Slider (10) Groove (11) Inductive head element (12) MR head element (13) Bump layer (15) Protective layer (16) Recording / reproducing head (17) Side rail (2) Head block (3) ) Substrate (4) Resist layer (41) Resist pattern (5) Acid treatment solution

Claims (3)

[Claims] A slider (1) having an air bearing surface (S) having a predetermined concavo-convex pattern, and a recording / reproducing head (16) formed on a side surface intersecting the air bearing surface (S) of the slider (1). A first step of forming a head portion (16) on a side surface of a substrate (3) serving as a slider (1); and a substrate (3) serving as an air bearing surface S. Resist layer on the surface of
A second step of forming (4); exposing and developing the resist layer (4) to form a resist pattern (41) corresponding to the concavo-convex pattern on the air bearing surface S;
A fourth step of performing ion beam etching on the surface of the substrate (3) via the resist pattern (41); and immersing the surface of the substrate (3) in an acidic treatment liquid (5). A method for manufacturing a floating magnetic head, comprising: a fifth step; and a sixth step of removing a resist pattern (41) from a surface of a substrate (3). 2. In a first step, a magnetoresistive head element (12) and an inductive head element (1) are provided on side surfaces of a substrate (3).
After forming (1), a protective layer (1
The method according to claim 1, wherein 5) is formed. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the acidic treatment liquid is a solution of hydrofluoric acid.