Magnetic recording read transducer having a laminated free layer

• US 9,214,169 B1
• Filed: 06/20/2014
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Original Assignee: Western Digital (Fremont) LLC (Western Digital Corporation)
• Inventors: Kaiser, Christian, Zheng, Yuankai, Jiang, Xin, Diao, Zhitao, Leng, Qunwen
• Primary Examiner(s): Young, Wayne
• Assistant Examiner(s): Garcia, Carlos E
• Application Number:
  US14/310,222
• Time in Patent Office: 543 Days
• Field of Search: 360/313, 360/324, 360/324.1, 360/324.12
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/098 comprising tunnel junctions, e.g. tunnel magnetoresistance sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/33 Structure or manufacture of flux-sensitive heads, i.e. for reproduction only; Combination of such heads with means for recording or erasing onlySingle head using magnetic domains for scanning G11B5/4946; multiple head for scanning G11B5/4907 and subgroups ; general details therefor G11B5/133 - G11B5/255
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/39 using magneto-resistive devices or effects
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/3903 using magnetic thin film layers or their effects, the films being part of integrated structures
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/3906 Details related to the use of magnetic thin film layers or to their effects
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/3954 the active elements transducing on a single track
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 5/3967 Composite structural arrangements of transducers, e.g. inductive write and magnetoresistive read G11B5/3906 takes precedence

Abstract

A method and system provide a magnetic transducer including a first shield, a read sensor, and a second shield. The read sensor is between the first shield and the second shield. The read sensor includes a pinned layer, a nonmagnetic spacer layer and a free layer. The nonmagnetic spacer layer is between the pinned layer and the free layer. The free layer includes a plurality of ferromagnetic layers interleaved with and sandwiching a plurality of nonmagnetic layers. The plurality of ferromagnetic layers are ferromagnetically aligned.

Claims

1. A magnetic transducer having an air-bearing surface (ABS) and comprising:

a first shield;

a second shield; and

a read sensor between the first shield and the second shield, the read sensor including a pinned layer, a nonmagnetic spacer layer and a free layer, the nonmagnetic spacer layer being between the pinned layer and the free layer, the free layer including a plurality of ferromagnetic layers interleaved with and sandwiching a plurality of nonmagnetic layers, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers being ferromagnetically aligned, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers consisting of a single material, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers being a plurality of CoB layers.

2. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein the free layer further includes an additional magnetic layer between the nonmagnetic spacer layer and a magnetic layer of the plurality of magnetic layers.

3. The magnetic transducer of claim 2 wherein the additional magnetic layer includes CoFe.

4. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein at least one of the plurality of ferromagnetic layers includes ferromagnetic sublayers.

5. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein the plurality of ferromagnetic layers are ferromagnetically coupled through the plurality of nonmagnetic layers via a Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida (RKKY) interaction.

6. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of nonmagnetic layers has a thickness of at least one and not more than seven Angstroms.

7. The magnetic transducer of claim 6 wherein the thickness is at least three Angstroms.

8. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein the plurality of CoB layers includes at least four and not more than seven CoB layers.

9. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein the plurality of nonmagnetic layers includes at least one of Re, Mo, Nb, W, Cr, Ag, Au, V, MgO, Mg, Al, Cu and Si.

10. The magnetic transducer of claim 9 wherein the plurality of nonmagnetic layers are selected from a plurality of Re layers, a plurality of Mo layers, a plurality of Nb layers, a plurality of W layers, a plurality of Cr layers, a plurality of Ag layers, a plurality of Au layers, a plurality of V layers, a plurality of MgO layers, a plurality of Mg layers, a plurality of Al layers, a plurality of Cu layers and a plurality of Si layers.

11. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein the plurality of ferromagnetic layers are ferromagnetically aligned and antiferromagnetically coupled or magnetically uncoupled.

12. The magnetic transducer of claim 1 wherein the plurality of ferromagnetic layers includes a first ferromagnetic layer furthest from the nonmagnetic spacer layer, the first ferromagnetic layer being more weakly coupled to the remaining portion of the plurality of ferromagnetic layers, than the remaining portion of the plurality of ferromagnetic layers are coupled with each other.

13. A magnetic transducer having an air-bearing surface (ABS) and comprising:

a first shield;

a second shield; and

a read sensor between the first shield and the second shield, the read sensor including a pinned layer, a nonmagnetic spacer layer and a free layer, the nonmagnetic spacer layer being between the pinned layer and the free layer, the free layer including a plurality of ferromagnetic layers interleaved with and sandwiching a single nonmagnetic layer, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers being ferromagnetically aligned and at least one of weakly ferromagnetically coupled, magnetically coupled and antiferromagnetically coupled, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers consisting of a single material, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers being a plurality of CoB layers.

14. A magnetic transducer having an air-bearing surface (ABS) and comprising:

a first shield;

a second shield; and

a read sensor between the first shield and the second shield, the read sensor including a pinned layer, a nonmagnetic spacer layer and a free layer, the nonmagnetic spacer layer being between the pinned layer and the free layer, the free layer including a CoFe layer, a plurality of CoB layers interleaved with and sandwiching a plurality of Ru layers, the plurality of CoB layers being ferromagnetically coupled through the plurality of Ru layers via a Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida (RKKY) interaction, the CoFe layer adjoining the nonmagnetic spacer layer and being between the plurality of CoB layers and the nonmagnetic spacer layer, each of the plurality of Ru layers having a thickness of at least three and not more than seven Angstroms, the plurality of CoB layers having a total thickness of at least fifty Angstroms and not more than eighty Angstroms, the plurality of CoB layers includes at least three and not more than seven CoB layers.

15. A disk drive comprising:

a media;

a slider including a magnetic read transducer having an air-bearing surface (ABS), the slider including magnetic transducer having a first shield, a second shield, and a read sensor between the first shield and the second shield, the read sensor including a pinned layer, a nonmagnetic spacer layer and a free layer, the nonmagnetic spacer layer being between the pinned layer and the free layer, the free layer including a plurality of ferromagnetic layers interleaved with and sandwiching a plurality of nonmagnetic layers, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers being ferromagnetically coupled through the plurality of nonmagnetic layers, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers consisting of a single material, the plurality of ferromagnetic layers being a plurality of CoB layers.