JPS6341151B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a magnetic head slider, and more particularly to a method for manufacturing a magnetic head slider used as a mass storage device of an electronic computer.

Conventionally, in magnetic disk drives, when the magnetic disk disk is stationary, the magnetic head slider is pressed onto the magnetic disk disk by a load spring, and when the magnetic disk disk rotates, a small amount of air is generated between the magnetic head slider and the magnetic disk disk. So-called CSS where an air film is formed and the magnetic head slider floats
method (contact start-stop method) is used. The lower the flying height of the magnetic head slider, the better in terms of magnetic head characteristics, and in the magnetic disk devices currently in widespread use, it is approximately 0.5 μm, and if the density is to be further increased in the future, a lower flying height will be required. Become.

One method of reducing the flying height of the magnetic head slider is to increase the load of the load spring. However, with this method, the magnetic head slider is strongly pressed against the magnetic disk disk when the magnetic disk disk is stationary, so the magnetic head slider and the magnetic disk disk tend to come into close contact, and when the magnetic disk disk starts rotating, the magnetic head slider and magnetic disk disk The disadvantage is that it is easily damaged.

One way to solve the above problem is to use a negative pressure magnetic head slider (hereinafter abbreviated as negative pressure slider). FIG. 1 is a plan view of the negative pressure slider viewed from the floating surface facing the magnetic disk disk. A magnetic head 1 reads signals from the magnetic disk disk and performs electromagnetic conversion.

This magnetic head 1 is connected to cross sections b-b' and a-a in FIG. 1 of the negative pressure slider shown in FIG. 2a.
A buoyancy effect occurs under the pressure distribution applied along a' (Fig. 2b, c). As shown in FIG. 2b, the pressure applied to the side rail 2 is higher than atmospheric pressure, similar to the conventional magnetic head slider, creating a levitation force on the slider. However, as shown in FIG. 2c, the pressure distribution along the cross section a-a' through the cross rail 3 has a so-called negative pressure portion 7 which is lower than atmospheric pressure. Due to the generation of a negative pressure portion, the negative pressure slider is subjected to an adsorption force to the magnetic disk disk. Since this adsorption force supplements the pressing force of the load spring, the flying height of the magnetic head slider can be lowered even if the pressing force of the load spring is reduced.

By the way, the depth of the negative pressure generating portion 4 of the negative pressure slider is approximately several μm, and it is extremely difficult to mechanically process it into the shape shown in FIG. Therefore, conventional negative pressure sliders have been manufactured by forming negative pressure generating portions by dry etching methods such as sputter etching or ion milling. However, the process of forming the negative pressure generating portion by dry etching involves a number of steps such as vapor deposition of mask material for mask formation and photo etching, making the manufacturing method complicated. Also, the time required for dry etching may be several μm depending on the material.
Etching could take more than 10 hours, making it impractical. Furthermore, in order to prevent the magnetic head 1 from being etched by dry etching, it was necessary to apply a mask over the magnetic head.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a manufacturing method that can manufacture a negative pressure head slider using simple steps and in a short period of time.

According to the present invention, by performing machining, a plurality of rectangular floating surfaces having long sides in the running direction of the magnetic recording medium are formed, and further, by using a thin film forming technique between the floating surfaces, the height is the same as that of the floating surfaces. A method of manufacturing a magnetic head slider utilizing negative pressure is obtained by creating a cross rail portion having a height slightly lower than or above the floating surface.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the invention.

First, as shown in FIG. 3a, a plurality of sliders are manufactured. A groove 9 with a depth of approximately 4 μm, which will serve as a negative pressure generating portion, is formed on the surface of a single block 8, which will serve as a base material, using a grinder. The remaining portion of the grinding indicated by diagonal lines becomes the side rail 10 and is mirror-polished.

Next, a mask 11 having a shape as shown in FIG. 3b is placed on the block, and Al ₂ O ₃ which will become the cross rail is vapor-deposited or sputtered. The external dimensions of the mask are the same as the external dimensions of the block.
Mask matching can be easily performed by matching the outer shapes of the two. A cross rail 13 is formed by depositing or sputtering an Al ₂ O ₃ thin film on a portion of the groove 9 through the notch 12 . The thickness of the Al ₂ O ₃ thin film is preferably slightly thinner than the depth of the groove 9 in order to prevent chipping of the cross rail.

The negative pressure magnetic head slider 14 is manufactured by cutting the block processed in the above manner into a shape as shown in FIG. 3d. The magnetic head 15 which performs electromagnetic conversion is formed by a conventional thin film head manufacturing method prior to the cutting shown in FIG. 3d. Further, as another embodiment of the present invention, there is a method using a simple rectangular mask 16 as shown in FIG. 4a. In this method, Al ₂ O ₃ for forming crossrails is also deposited on the side rails, as shown in FIG. 4b. By removing this protruding portion 17 by wrapping, a negative pressure slider is created.

Note that the magnetic head 15 does not necessarily have to be a thin film head, but may be a ring type head made of bulk ferrite. Note that if the cross rail 13 is formed at a height slightly lower than the floating surface of the head slider, chipping of the cross rail can be prevented when dust or the like gets mixed in between the medium and the slider.

As explained above, the present invention combines machining and thin film forming technology to create a negative pressure slider that does not require complicated processes such as mask formation and prevention of magnetic head etching associated with conventional dry etching methods. Provides a method for manufacturing.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a plan view showing the negative pressure slider, Figure 2a
is a side view showing the negative pressure slider. FIG. 2b is a cross section b-
Pressure distribution diagram along b′, Fig. 2c is cross section a-
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Magnetic head, 2...Side rail, 3...Cross rail, 4...Negative pressure generation part, 5...Magnetic disk disk, 6...Magnetic disk disk rotating direction, 7...Negative pressure part, 8...Block, 9...Groove, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Side rail, 11... Mask, 12... Notch, 13... Cross rail, 14... Negative pressure slider, 15... Magnetic head, 16... Mask.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. On the floating surface of the slider block, two side rails extending in the medium running direction are left on both sides, and a groove with a length equal to the length of the slider block in the medium running direction is formed at a predetermined depth by grinding. a step of masking the floating surface in a portion other than a window shaped to communicate the two side rails in a direction perpendicular to the medium running direction; and performing vapor deposition or sputtering on the window portion to form a cross rail. 1. A method for manufacturing a magnetic head slider using negative pressure, comprising the steps of: forming a magnetic head slider using negative pressure;