Nano-oxide layers and PtMn-based specular spin valves and heads

Nano-oxide layers and relevant spin valves have been investigated. Morphology observation shows that the nano-oxide layers are adequate for current spin valves as thin, dense, and uniform specular reflection layers to enhance scattering of electrons at interfaces. Large enhancement of ΔR/R (∼16% with a ΔR∼3.7 Ω/sq) has been achieved with the help of specular reflection. Both full film and read heads data demonstrated thermally stable magnetic performance. Addition of nano-oxide layers does not compromise head ESD robustness. Readers with nano-oxide layers show amplitude sensitivity of up to 10 mV/μm and are suitable for >50 Gb/in² recording applications.