JPH10222816A - Thin-film magnetic head and magnetic disk drive - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) An object of the present invention is to reduce TA generated when a disk and a head come into contact with each other and to improve the reproduction output of the MR head. SOLUTION: A material having a high thermal diffusivity, such as hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon, vapor-phase synthetic diamond, silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, or amorphous BeO, is used for each non-magnetic insulating film of the head element. Applies to disc protection film.

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 and a manufacturing method thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 3 is an external view of a general magnetic head slider having a rail on a surface facing a disk. 1 and 2 are enlarged views of the thin-film magnetic transducer 10 of the thin-film magnetic head. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line aa 'in FIG.
FIG. 2 is a view of the same portion as viewed from the disk facing surface side.
In these figures, the head element is an MR head for reading,
A typical composite head with an inductive head for writing is shown. In the figure, reference numeral 14 denotes a slider for supporting the thin-film magnetic transducer, which is made of alumina titanium carbide, zirconia or the like. Reference numeral 102 denotes a base insulating film. 11
Is an MR head, which is composed of a lower shield film 103, an MR element 105, an upper shield film (lower magnetic film in an inductive head) 107, an electrode 101 for passing a current through the MR element, and insulating films 104 and 106 between the layers. To be done. 12
Is an induction type head, which is composed of a lower magnetic film (upper shield film in an MR head) 107, a coil film 111, a gap insulating film 108, and an insulating film 112 made of an organic resin. Further, the entire thin-film magnetic transducer is covered with a protective insulating film 110. Base insulating film 102, MR
Normally, silicon oxide or alumina is used for the interlayer insulating films 104 and 106 of the head, the gap insulating film 108 and the protective insulating film 110 of the induction type head. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between the head slider 1 and the disk 2 during operation of the magnetic disk device. Normally, the magnetic disk 2 includes an aluminum / magnesium alloy disk 15 having a nickel-phosphorous film formed on its surface, a magnetic film 16 made of a cobalt alloy film or the like,
It is composed of a protective film 17 on the disk surface made of an amorphous carbon film or the like, and a perfluoroether lubricating film 18. In recent years, the flying gap 3 from the magnetic disk surface of the head slider has become 0.1 μm or less, and the frequency with which the head slider and the disk collide during operation has increased. For the purpose of preventing a head crash due to this collision and protecting a magnetic film such as an MR element and a shield film which are easily corroded, a protective film 13 made of hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon or the like has recently been formed on a disk facing surface of a head slider. Are formed.

[0003]

The MR head is a magnetic head that performs reading by detecting a change in electric resistance of an MR element caused by a magnetic field from a recording medium, and is an essential technology for increasing the recording density. . On the other hand, as the flying height of the head slider decreases with the increase in recording density, the frequency of contact between the magnetic disk and the head increases.
When the disk contacts the head, a phenomenon called thermal asperity (hereinafter abbreviated as TA) occurs. this is,
This is a phenomenon in which the temperature of the MR element rises due to the frictional heat generated at the time of contact, so that the resistance momentarily rises and the read signal is disturbed. To solve this problem, a method of compensating using a signal processing technique (for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
No. 785), but the TA strength that can be compensated is limited, and it cannot be said to be an essential solution. On the other hand, as a method of reducing TA itself, it is considered effective to devise to release frictional heat generated by contact. Specifically, for example, MR
A material having a large thermal diffusivity is used for the non-magnetic insulating film that is in contact with the element. However, a material that has both electrical insulation and thermal conductivity and is suitable for each step of the process has not been reported. Further, a current flows during operation in the MR element. In theory, a higher sensitivity should be obtained as the current density increases. However, when the current flowing through the MR element increases, the temperature of the MR element rises due to electromigration, and conversely, the reading sensitivity deteriorates and the life is shortened. (Referred to as current carrying capacity). In order to improve the withstand current and improve the sensitivity of the MR element, it is necessary to devise a method for releasing the heat accumulated in the MR element by some method like the TA countermeasure.

[0004]

Means for Solving the Problems TA is caused by an instantaneous temperature rise that occurs when the MR element comes into contact with the disk, and therefore, it is considered that any structure that easily diffuses heat near the MR element is sufficient. . The present inventors have made various studies on the means for solving the TA with respect to the material, formation method, and the like of the nonmagnetic insulating film adjacent to the MR element. As a result, it was found that TA was significantly improved when a material having a thermal diffusivity of about 5 times or more that of conventional alumina or silicon oxide was used. It is difficult to measure the thermal diffusivity of thin films differently from that of bulk, but the optical alternating current method (for example, Japanese Journal of Ap
plied Physics. 30 (1991) 1295) allows relative measurements. As a result of various studies, such materials having a high thermal diffusivity include hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon, vapor-phase synthetic diamond,
It has been found that silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, amorphous BeO, and the like are suitable for the process. Thus, MR
The reason that TA is greatly reduced by increasing the thermal diffusivity of the material of the non-magnetic insulating film adjacent to the element is that the heat temporarily generated by the contact efficiently diffuses to the shield film having a large heat capacity. It is thought that.

[0005] Methods of forming hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon include sputtering and chemical vapor deposition (Chemical Vapor Deposition:
Hereinafter abbreviated as CVD). In the sputtering method, hydrogen is used as a target material, and hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon can be formed by any of magnetron sputtering, RF sputtering, and DC sputtering in a mixed gas atmosphere of hydrogen or a hydrocarbon-based gas and argon. On the other hand, the chemical vapor deposition method includes capacitively coupled plasma, inductively coupled plasma, and electron cyclotron resonance (Electron Cyclotron Resonance).
on Resonance: Plasma C using ECR
There are a VD method and a film forming method such as ion plating. At this time, the raw materials are methane, ethane, ethylene, benzene,
A hydrocarbon-based material such as toluene is used. Regardless of which method is used, the electrical resistivity, film stress, etc. can be optimized by controlling the film forming conditions. In particular, the hydrogen concentration in the film is an important parameter that affects the electrical resistivity, hardness, and combustion resistance, and is selected within the range of 10 to 50 atm%. Above all, 20 to 40 atm% is preferable.
This is because if the hydrogen concentration is too low, the insulating property is lowered, and if it is too high, the film hardness is lowered. In addition, since hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon lacks adhesion to the shield film and the MR film, S is formed as an adhesive layer at the interface with these films.
It is necessary to form a film of i, silicon carbide or the like by a sputtering method or the like. The thickness of the adhesive layer is preferably as thin as possible, but is selected in the range of 1 to 10 nm from the viewpoint of adhesive strength.

A method for forming a vapor-phase synthetic diamond is as follows.
There is a CVD method or the like. Also in the case of vapor-phase synthetic diamond, it is necessary to form a film of Si, silicon carbide, or the like at the interface with the shield film or the MR film by a sputtering method or the like, and the thickness of the adhesive layer is preferably as thin as possible. Good but 1-10nm
It is selected in the range of.

[0007] Silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, and amorphous BeO are formed by RF sputtering, RF magnetron sputtering, electron beam evaporation, or the like. In the silicon-containing amorphous carbon, the thermal diffusivity and the electrical resistivity can be controlled by the content of silicon. This can be realized by changing the ratio of silicon in the target. The silicon content in the formed film is selected from 10 to 70 atm%, preferably 20 to 60 atm%. This is because if the amount of silicon is too large, the insulating property is reduced, and if the amount is too small, the thermal conductivity is deteriorated. Amorphous AlN and amorphous BeO can be formed into a film having a high thermal diffusivity by performing sputtering, electron beam evaporation, or the like in an argon gas atmosphere or an argon gas atmosphere containing nitrogen and oxygen, respectively.

Further, when the present inventors use the above-mentioned material having a high thermal diffusivity as the non-magnetic insulating film adjacent to the MR element, it is preferable to use any material for the protective film on the disk surface. Was examined. As a result, vapor-phase synthetic diamond, silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, amorphous BeO, etc., which have a higher thermal diffusivity than the amorphous carbon conventionally used as the protective film on the disk surface, are used. Proved to be effective. Therefore, in order to reduce the TA, it is effective to use the above-mentioned material having a high thermal diffusivity as the non-magnetic insulating film adjacent to the MR element. It has been found that it is very effective to change to a material such as vapor-phase synthetic diamond, silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, amorphous BeO, or the like, which has a higher thermal diffusivity than amorphous carbon.

On the other hand, it is considered that it is necessary to suppress a steady temperature rise unlike an instantaneous temperature rise such as TA in order to improve the withstand current of the MR element. For that purpose, it is important to make the head using a material with good heat conduction as much as possible. With respect to this problem, the present inventors have used silicon carbide, whose thermal conductivity is about 10 times that of alumina titanium carbide, for the slider material, and the insulating film between the slider and the lower shield film and between the lower shield film and the MR element. Insulation film,
Hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon, vapor-phase synthetic diamond for all inorganic insulating films that compose the head element, such as the insulating film between the MR element and the upper shield film, the gap insulating film for the induction type head, and the insulating film for protecting the entire head It has been found that it is very effective to use a high thermal conductive material such as silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, and amorphous BeO. The method for forming these inorganic insulating films is the same as the method described above.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below more specifically with reference to the drawings.

According to the present invention, in the head structure shown in FIG. 1 and FIG.
By changing the material No. 06 from the conventional alumina or silicon oxide to a material having a high thermal diffusivity, TA caused by contact with the disk 2 is greatly reduced. When such a non-magnetic insulating film is actually used, the strength of TA generated when the head 1 and the disk 2 come into contact with each other is half that of the conventional one.
It has been found that TA can be significantly reduced by a relatively simple material change without complicated process change.

Further, when silicon carbide is used for the slider material 14,
In addition, the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film, the gap insulating film 108 of the inductive head, and the entire head are protected. Insulating film 110
By changing the film to a film with high thermal diffusivity,
It was confirmed that the heat generated by Joule heating of the element diffused efficiently and the reproduction output increased.

The details will be described in the following embodiments.

<Embodiment 1> An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

The material of the slider 14 is alumina titanium carbide. First, the non-magnetic insulating film 102 made of alumina was formed to a thickness of 6 μm by sputtering, and then the lower shield film 103 made of NiFe or the like was formed in a desired shape of 3 μm by film formation by sputtering and patterning using a photolithography technique. Amorphous silicon (not shown) by sputtering on it
Was formed to a thickness of 5 nm, and a nonmagnetic insulating film 104 made of hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon was formed to a thickness of 180 nm using a capacitively coupled plasma CVD method using methane gas as a raw material. As a method for forming hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon, a cathode coupling method in which a high frequency is applied to the substrate side is used, and a high frequency power of 120 W,
The film formation was performed under the conditions of a methane gas flow rate of 8 sccm and a gas pressure of 10 Pa. The hydrogen concentration of this film is HFS (Hyd
rogen Forward Scattering)
Analysis showed about 33%. Further, 5 nm of amorphous silicon (not shown) was formed. Subsequently, an MR element 105 made of NiFe or the like is formed by sputtering,
Patterning was performed into a desired shape using a photolithography technique. Further, after forming a pattern of a hard magnetic film (not shown), a pattern of the electrode 101 used for supplying a sense current to the MR element 105 was formed.
Amorphous silicon carbide (not shown) having a thickness of 5 nm was formed thereon by sputtering, and a nonmagnetic insulating film 106 made of hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon was formed to have a thickness of 200 nm. This nonmagnetic insulating film 106 was formed under the same conditions as the above nonmagnetic insulating film 104. Further, after 5 nm of amorphous silicon carbide (not shown) was formed, an upper shield film 107 made of NiFe or the like was formed by sputtering, and was patterned by photolithography. Further, a nonmagnetic insulating film 108 made of alumina or the like was formed to a thickness of 500 nm by sputtering. This insulating film is the gap insulating film of the inductive head. Subsequently, an organic insulating film 112 made of a resist or the like, a coil 111 made of copper or the like, and an organic insulating film 112 are sequentially formed. Next, a magnetic film (not shown) of NiFe or the like is formed to a thickness of 200 nm by sputtering or the like, and is patterned into a desired shape using a photolithography technique.
An upper magnetic film 109 having a thickness of 3 μm was formed thereon by plating. Finally, an alumina film is formed by sputtering as a protective film 110 covering the entire head element. The film thickness at this time was 50 μm.

Using the thin-film magnetic head thus formed, the TA strength was evaluated. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of TA strength evaluation. Large protrusions were formed on the magnetic disk 2 in order to intentionally generate TA. The disc was created by the following method. First, a magnetic film 16 made of 100 nm of chromium and 30 nm of a cobalt alloy film was formed by sputtering on an aluminum / magnesium alloy disk 15 polished after forming a nickel-phosphorous film to a thickness of 10 μm by plating. Subsequently, an amorphous carbon film having a thickness of 30 nm was formed on the disk surface by sputtering, and this was etched using a photolithography technique, thereby forming a protective film 19 having a projection 20 with a diameter of 5 μm and a height of 20 nm. Finally, a 2 nm-thick perfluoroether-based lubricating film was attached. Using a head and a disk produced by the method of the present embodiment, a test was conducted in which the flying height was reduced below normal and TA was intentionally generated by contact between the head element and the projection 19, and the TA strength was as shown in FIG. In addition, it is about half that of the conventional head.

<Embodiment 2> In this embodiment, the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon used as the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element and the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film in Example 1 is used. Instead, vapor phase synthetic diamond was used.
At this time, the thicknesses of the insulating films 104 and 106 were 180 nm and 200 nm, respectively.

Using a head and a disk manufactured by the method of the present embodiment, a test was conducted to lower the flying height and to intentionally generate TA. The TA strength was about 4 times that of the conventional head.
It is reduced by a factor of one.

Embodiment 3 In this embodiment, the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon used as the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element and the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film in Example 1 is used. Instead, silicon-containing amorphous carbon was used. However, since the silicon-containing amorphous carbon has very good adhesion to the magnetic film, the amorphous silicon and the amorphous silicon carbide formed in the steps before and after the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon in Example 1 are This is unnecessary in this embodiment. The method for forming silicon-containing amorphous carbon will be described in detail below.

The target material has a molar ratio of silicon to carbon of 30.
The insulating films 104 and 106 were formed by RF magnetron sputtering using the sintered body of the pair 70. The film formation conditions were a high frequency power of 500 W and an argon gas flow rate of 30 s.
ccm and gas pressure was 1 Pa. The silicon concentration of this film is
RBS (Rutherford Backscatter)
It was about 38 atm% by Ring Spectrometry) analysis. The thicknesses of the insulating films 104 and 106 were 180 nm and 200 nm, respectively.

Using a head and a disk produced by the method of this embodiment, a test was conducted in which the flying height was lowered and TA was intentionally generated, and the TA strength was about 3 that of the conventional head.
It is reduced to one-fold.

<Embodiment 4> In this embodiment, the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon used as the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element and the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film in Example 1 is used. Instead, amorphous AlN was used. less than,
A method for forming amorphous AlN will be described in detail.

Insulating films 104 and 106 are formed by RF magnetron sputtering using AlN as a target material.
Was formed. The film forming conditions are: high frequency power 1000 W, argon gas flow rate 30 sccm + nitrogen gas flow rate 5 sccm,
The gas pressure was 1.3 Pa. In addition, the insulating films 104 and 10
The film thickness of No. 6 was 180 nm and 200 nm, respectively.

Using a head and a disk manufactured by the method of this embodiment, a test was conducted in which the flying height was lowered and the TA was intentionally generated, and the TA strength was about 3 that of the conventional head.
It is reduced by a factor of one.

Example 5 In this example, the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon used as the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element and the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film in Example 1 was used. Instead, amorphous BeO was used. less than,
The method for forming amorphous BeO will be described in detail.

The insulating films 104 and 106 are formed by RF magnetron sputtering using BeO as a target material.
Was formed. The film formation conditions were a high frequency power of 800 W, an argon gas flow rate of 50 sccm + an oxygen gas flow rate of 5 sccm, and a gas pressure of 1.3 Pa. Further, the insulating films 104 and 106
Had a film thickness of 180 nm and 200 nm, respectively.

Using a head and a disk manufactured by the method of this embodiment, a test was conducted in which the flying height was lowered than usual and TA was intentionally generated. As a result, the TA strength was about 3 that of the conventional head.
It is reduced by a factor of one.

<Embodiment 6> In this embodiment, the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon used as the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element and the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film in Example 1 is used. Instead, silicon-containing amorphous carbon is used, and
As the disk protective film, silicon-containing amorphous carbon was used instead of conventional amorphous carbon. Since silicon-containing amorphous carbon has very good adhesion to different materials, the amorphous silicon and amorphous silicon carbide formed in the steps before and after the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon in Example 1 were used in this embodiment. Not necessary in the example. Hereinafter, a method of forming the silicon-containing amorphous carbon used for each of the head and the disk will be described in detail.

First, in the case of the head element, an insulating film 10 is formed by RF magnetron sputtering using a sintered body having a molar ratio of silicon and carbon of 30:70 as a target material.
4, 106 were formed. The film forming conditions are high-frequency power 500
W, the flow rate of argon gas was 30 sccm, and the gas pressure was 1 Pa. The silicon concentration in the film is RBS (Ruther
ford Backscattering Spec
analysis) was about 38 atm%. The insulating films 104 and 106 had film thicknesses of 180 nm and 200 nm, respectively.

In forming the disk protective film, the insulating films 104 and 106 were formed by RF magnetron sputtering using a sintered body having a silicon / carbon molar ratio of 40 to 60 as a target material. The film formation conditions were a high frequency power of 500 W, an argon gas flow rate of 30 sccm, and a gas pressure of 1 Pa. The silicon concentration of this film is RBS (Ru
theford Backscuttering S
Spectrometry) analysis shows about 49 atm%
Met. As in the case of the first embodiment, the disk protective film was formed by photolithography using a diameter of 5 μm and a height of 20 n.
m projections were formed.

Using a head and a disk manufactured by the method of the present embodiment, a test was conducted to lower the flying height and to intentionally generate TA. The TA strength was about 5 times that of the conventional combination of head and disk. It is reduced to one-fold.

<Embodiment 7> An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

Silicon carbide was used as the material of the slider 14. As in Example 1, head materials were laminated by using a thin film process such as sputtering, plating, photolithography, etc., and a head element 10 composed of an MR head 11 and an inductive head 12 was produced. In this embodiment, the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film, the gap insulating film 108 of the inductive head, Hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon was used for the insulating film 110 that protects the entire head. Hereinafter, a specific method for forming the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon will be described.

Hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon was formed by RF sputtering using graphite as a target. Film formation was performed under the following conditions: high frequency power 800 W, argon gas flow rate 46 sccm + methane gas flow rate 4 sccm, and gas pressure 7 Pa. The hydrogen concentration of this film is HFS (Hydrogen
n Forward Scattering analysis showed about 35 atm%.

Since hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon itself has low adhesiveness, amorphous silicon carbide is used as an adhesive layer in the preceding and subsequent steps.
nm formed. The thickness of each layer is 8 μm for the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, 180 nm for the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, and 200 nm for the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film. The gap insulating film 108 of the induction type head was 500 nm, and the insulating film 110 for protecting the entire head was 45 μm.

The thin-film magnetic head thus formed was used to evaluate the head reproduction output. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, the reproduction output peak is shifted to the high current density side, and the reproduction output at the peak position is 1.
It has improved five times. In other words, it has been clarified that since the heat radiation of the MR element is effectively performed, even at a high current density, a decrease in the reproduction output due to a rise in temperature is suppressed. At this time, both the conventional head and the head of this embodiment were compared under the condition that the respective output waveforms were symmetrical by optimizing the bias magnetic field. Also,
As in the case of the first embodiment, a test was performed using the head formed by the method of the present embodiment and a disk having large projections to lower the flying height and deliberately generate TA. It is reduced by half.

<Embodiment 8> An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

Silicon carbide was used as the material of the slider 14. As in Example 1, head materials were laminated by using a thin film process such as sputtering, plating, photolithography, etc., and a head element 10 composed of an MR head 11 and an inductive head 12 was produced. In this embodiment, the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film, the gap insulating film 108 of the induction type head, Vapor phase synthetic diamond is used for the insulating film 110 that protects the entire head.

Since vapor-phase synthetic diamond itself has low adhesiveness, amorphous silicon having a thickness of 5 nm was formed as an adhesive layer in the preceding and following steps. The thickness of each layer is 2 μm for the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, 180 nm for the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, 200 nm for the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film, The gap insulating film 108 of the induction type head was 500 nm, and the insulating film 110 protecting the entire head was 20 μm.

Using the thin film magnetic head thus formed, the head reproduction output was evaluated. As a result, the peak of the reproduction output shifted to the high current density side, and the reproduction output at the peak position was improved to twice that of the conventional head. Also, as in Example 1, a test was performed using the head formed by the method of the present example and a disk having large projections to lower the flying height from normal and to intentionally generate TA.
The A strength is reduced to about 1/4 of that of the conventional head.

<Embodiment 9> An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

Silicon carbide was used as a substrate. As in Example 1, head materials were laminated by using a thin film process such as sputtering, plating, photolithography, etc., and a head element 10 composed of an MR head 11 and an inductive head 12 was produced. In this embodiment, the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film and the insulating film 1 between the lower shield film and the MR element
04, silicon-containing amorphous carbon was used for the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film, the gap insulating film 108 of the induction type head, and the insulating film 110 for protecting the entire head. The specific method for forming the silicon-containing amorphous carbon will be described below.

The target material has a molar ratio of silicon to carbon of 3
Using a 5 to 60 sintered body, silicon-containing amorphous carbon was formed by RF magnetron sputtering. The film formation conditions were a high frequency power of 500 W and an argon gas flow rate of 30 sc.
The gas pressure was 1 cm and the gas pressure was 1 Pa. The silicon concentration of this film is R
BS (Rutherford Backscatter)
ing Spectrometry) analysis reveals about 4
It was 4 atm%. Regarding the film thickness of each layer, the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film is 5 μm, the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element is 180 nm, the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film is 200 nm, and the inductive type is used. The gap insulating film 108 of the head was 450 nm, and the insulating film 110 protecting the entire head was 40 μm.

Using the thin-film magnetic head thus formed, the head reproduction output was evaluated. As a result, the peak of the reproduction output shifted to the high current density side, and the reproduction output at the peak position was improved to 1.8 times that of the conventional head. As in the case of the first embodiment, a test was conducted using the head formed by the method of the present embodiment and a disk having large projections to lower the flying height and deliberately generate TA. To about one-third.

<Embodiment 10> An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

Silicon carbide was used as the material of the slider 14. As in Example 1, head materials were laminated by using a thin film process such as sputtering, plating, photolithography, etc., and a head element 10 composed of an MR head 11 and an inductive head 12 was produced. In this embodiment, the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film, the gap insulating film 108 of the induction type head, Amorphous AlN was used for the insulating film 110 that protects the entire head. The specific method for forming the amorphous AlN will be described below.

RF is obtained by using AlN as a target material.
Amorphous AlN was formed by magnetron sputtering. The film forming conditions were a high frequency power of 1000 W, an argon gas flow rate of 30 sccm + a nitrogen gas flow rate of 5 sccm, and a gas pressure of 1.3 Pa. The thickness of each layer is 5 μm for the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, 180 nm for the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, and for the MR film.
The insulating film 106 between the element and the upper shield film is 200 nm,
The gap insulating film 108 of the induction type head was 500 nm, and the insulating film 110 for protecting the entire head was 50 μm.

Using the thin film magnetic head thus formed, the head reproduction output was evaluated. As a result, the reproduction output peak was shifted to the high current density side, and the reproduction output at the peak position was improved to 1.6 times that of the conventional head. Further, as in the case of Example 1, using the head prepared by the method of this example and a disk having large protrusions, a test was conducted in which the flying height was lowered than usual and TA was intentionally generated. About one-third.

<Embodiment 11> An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

Silicon carbide was used as the material of the slider 14. As in Example 1, head materials were laminated by using a thin film process such as sputtering, plating, photolithography, etc., and a head element 10 composed of an MR head 11 and an inductive head 12 was produced. In this embodiment, the insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film, the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element, the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film, the gap insulating film 108 of the inductive head, Amorphous BeO was used for the insulating film 110 for protecting the entire head. Hereinafter, a specific method for forming the amorphous BeO will be described.

BeO is used as the target material, and the insulating films 104 and 1 are formed by RF magnetron sputtering.
06 was formed. The film forming conditions are high-frequency power 800 W, argon gas flow rate 50 sccm + oxygen gas flow rate 5 sccc.
m, and the gas pressure was 1.3 Pa. The film thickness of each layer is
The insulating film 102 between the slider and the lower shield film has a thickness of 4 μm.
m, the insulating film 104 between the lower shield film and the MR element is 18
0 nm, the insulating film 106 between the MR element and the upper shield film is 200 nm, and the gap insulating film 108 of the inductive head is 5 nm.
00 nm, the insulating film 110 for protecting the entire head is 40 μm.
It was m.

Using the thin-film magnetic head thus formed, the head reproduction output was evaluated. As a result, the reproduction output peak was shifted to the high current density side, and the reproduction output at the peak position was improved to 1.6 times that of the conventional head.
Also, as in Example 1, a test was performed using the head formed by the method of the present example and a disk having large projections to reduce the flying height below normal and to intentionally generate TA.
The TA intensity is reduced to about one third of the conventional head.

[0053]

According to the present invention, the non-magnetic insulating film having a high thermal diffusivity is selected as the constituent material of the head element and the disk protective film to reduce the TA generated when the disk and the head come into contact with each other. Also, since the MR element can efficiently dissipate heat, the reproduction output can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a thin-film magnetic head element section.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of the thin-film magnetic head element section viewed from a disk facing surface.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a thin-film magnetic head slider.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a positional relationship between a head slider and a disk when the magnetic disk device is operating.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a head slider and a disk at the time of TA evaluation.

FIG. 6 shows T of a conventional head and a head of one embodiment of the present invention.
The characteristic view which shows the comparison of A intensity.

FIG. 7 is a characteristic diagram showing a comparison of reproduction output saturation points of a conventional head and a head of one embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Thin film magnetic head element 11 ... MR head, 12 ... Inductive head, 13 ... Protective film on the surface of a head slider, 101 ... Electrode, 102 ... Under-insulating film, 103 ... Lower shield film, 104 ... Insulating film, 105 ... MR Element 106: Insulating film 107: Upper shield film 108: Gap insulating film of inductive element 109: Upper magnetic film 110: Protective insulating film 111: Coil film 112: Organic insulating film

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hiromitsu Toshimatsu 2880 Kozu, Odawara-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture, Hitachi, Ltd.Storage Systems Division (72) Inventor Noriyuki Saiki 2880 Kozu, Kozu, Odawara-shi, Kanagawa Hitachi Storage Corporation System Division

Claims (8)

[Claims] In a magnetic head using a magnetoresistive head for reading and an inductive head for writing, an insulating film between a lower shield film and an MR element and an insulating film between the MR element and an upper shield film are included. Hydrogen amorphous carbon, vapor-phase synthetic diamond, silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN,
A thin-film magnetic head using at least one material of amorphous BeO. 2. A magnetic head using an MR head for reading and an inductive head for writing, wherein a hydrogen-containing amorphous film is used as an insulating film between the lower shield film and the MR element and an insulating film between the MR element and the upper shield film. When using carbon, the hydrogen concentration in the hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon is 10 to 50 atm%. 3. A magnetic head using an MR head for reading and an inductive head for writing, wherein silicon-containing amorphous carbon is used as an insulating film between the lower shield film and the MR element and an insulating film between the MR element and the upper shield film. Wherein the silicon concentration in the silicon-containing amorphous carbon is 10 to 70 atm%. 4. A method of manufacturing a magnetic head using an MR head for reading and an induction type head for writing, comprising a hydrogen-containing non-insulating film as an insulating film between a lower shield film and an MR element and an insulating film between an MR element and an upper shield film. When amorphous carbon is used, the above hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon is deposited by a chemical vapor deposition method, a sputtering method, or the like through an adhesive layer of amorphous silicon or amorphous silicon carbide formed by a sputtering method, a chemical vapor deposition method. The method of manufacturing a thin film magnetic head according to claim 2, wherein the thin film magnetic head is formed. 5. A method of manufacturing a magnetic head using an MR head for reading and an inductive head for writing, comprising: an insulating film between a lower shield film and an MR element; and an insulating film between an MR element and an upper shield film. When the phase-synthesized diamond is used, the vapor-phase synthesized diamond is formed by the chemical vapor deposition method via an adhesive layer of amorphous silicon or amorphous silicon carbide formed by the sputtering method or the chemical vapor deposition method. A method for manufacturing the thin film magnetic head described. 6. A method for manufacturing a magnetic head using an MR head for reading and an inductive head for writing, comprising an insulating film between the lower shield film and the MR element and an insulating film between the MR element and the upper shield film. Silicon amorphous carbon, amorphous Al
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the insulating film is formed by a sputtering method when using any one of N and amorphous BeO. 7. A magnetic disk drive using an MR head for reading and an inductive head for writing, wherein a hydrogen-containing amorphous film is formed on an insulating film between the lower shield film and the MR element and an insulating film between the MR element and the upper shield film. Carbon, gas-phase synthetic diamond, silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, amorphous Be
O, and at least one material selected from the group consisting of vapor-phase synthetic diamond, silicon-containing amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, and amorphous BeO as a protective film on the disk surface. Magnetic disk drive. 8. A magnetic head using an MR head for reading and an inductive head for writing, using silicon carbide as a material of a slider supporting the head, and an insulating film and a lower shield film between the slider and the lower shield film. Hydrogen-containing amorphous carbon, vapor-phase synthetic diamond, silicon-containing, as an insulating film between the MR element and the MR element, an insulating film between the MR element and the upper shield film, a gap insulating film of the inductive head, and an insulating film for protecting the entire head. A magnetic head using at least one of amorphous carbon, amorphous AlN, and amorphous BeO.