Reduced stiction air bearing slider

Details Reduced stiction air bearing slider Reduced stiction air bearing slider

1993-09-17

2001-12-11

Cao, Allen (Department: 2652)

Dynamic magnetic information storage or retrieval

Fluid bearing head support

Disk record

Reexamination Certificate

active

06330131

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to air bearing sliders used with magnetic head assemblies in disk drives.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Although the following description is directed to an air bearing slider, it should be understood that the invention is also applicable to contact or pseudo-contact type sliders.
Magnetic head assemblies that fly relative to rotating magnetic disks are used extensively in disk drives for recording or reading data. An objective for optimizing the noncontact transducing relationship between the flying head and the magnetic recording disk is to maintain a very close, constant, and stable spacing between the head slider and the disk surface. A close spacing, coupled with very narrow transducing gaps and very thin magnetic record films, allows recording of very short wavelength, high frequency signals, thereby maximizing the density and storage capacity of data recording. Constant spacing between the flying head slider and the disk surface minimizes the fluctuations in the signal amplitude, therefore optimizing signal resolution. This constant spacing must be maintained as the head slider moves between the inner and outer regions of the disk surface, therefore the effects of the change in skew on the flying height must be held to a minimum.
Air bearing sliders used in disk drives typically have a leading edge, and a trailing edge at which thin film transducers are deposited. Generally, the sliders have tapered portions at the leading edge and longitudinal rails that extend from the tapers all or part way to the trailing edge. The tapers may be shaped and of such length as to provide fast takeoff of the slider from a rest position, where it is seated in contact with the disk surface, to a flying attitude relative to the disk.
When the disk drive goes into operation and the aerodynamics of the air bearing slider cause it to lift off from the surface of an associated magnetic disk, stiction may occur and cause severe problems. For example, wear can result on the overcoat of the magnetic media or the underlying layer. Also adhesive failure mechanisms can be induced, resulting in particulate generation which can produce fretting wear and catastrophic failure of the head-to-disk interface. In addition, any change in the properties of the transducer tips can cause changes in flying height with resultant degradation of signal amplitude.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of this invention is to provide a magnetic head air bearing slider wherein the stiction force at the initially contacting head slider-to-disk interface is controlled and minimized.
According to this invention, a magnetic head air bearing slider is formed with two outer rails with a taper region at the leading edge. The outer rails may extend all the way to the trailing edge, or a multi-pad design may be used wherein the outer side rails extend approximately half-way to the trailing edge, and an additional centered pad at the trailing edge on which one or more transducers are deposited. In a preferred embodiment of this invention, the air bearing surface is modified with a hard, friction lowering layer of DLC (diamond-like-carbon) covering only a fraction of the air bearing surface of the slider. The DLC layer extends most or part of the way along the side rails, and may be straight, angled, or curved relative to the trailing edge. This DLC layer is formed towards the leading edge area of the side rails, and a thin residual layer covers the remaining surface of the slider. This implementation is particularly useful with magnetoresistive devices which require corrosion or smearing protection. The thin residual layer may have a zero thickness for inductive heads.


REFERENCES:
patent: 5079657 (1992-01-01), Aronoff et al.
patent: 5175658 (1992-12-01), Chang et al.
patent: 5267109 (1993-11-01), Chapin et al.
patent: 5323282 (1994-06-01), Kanai et al.
patent: 5345353 (1994-09-01), Krantz et al.
patent: 5347412 (1994-09-01), Nitta et al.
patent: 0558983 (1993-09-01), None
patent: 4274014 (1992-09-01), None

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