Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 15
Claim 1
Independent Claim
120 words
A process for making a magnetic head comprising the steps of: forming a first pole piece comprising magnetic material; depositing a gap-forming layer comprising nonmagnetic material over the first pole piece; forming a first patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer on the gap-forming layer; curing the first patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C. to crosslink the polymer; forming a conductive coil on the cured first patterned layer; forming a second patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer over the conductive coil; curing the second patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C. to crosslink the polymer; and forming a second pole piece layer of magnetic material to complete the magnetic head.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
120 words
A process for making a magnetic head comprising the steps of: forming a first pole piece comprising magnetic material; depositing a gap-forming layer comprising nonmagnetic material over the first pole piece; forming a first patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer on the gap-forming layer; curing the first patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C. to crosslink the polymer; forming a conductive coil on the cured first patterned layer; forming a second patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer over the conductive coil; curing the second patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C. to crosslink the polymer; and forming a second pole piece layer of magnetic material to complete the magnetic head.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising a step of providing a giant magnetoresistive structure integrated with the magnetic head before the step of curing the first patterned layer.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
19 words
The method of claim 1 wherein the first patterned layer is exposed to electromagnetic energy during the electron irradiation.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising a step of cooling the magnetic head during the step of electron irradiation to maintain a temperature below about 150 C.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising a step of covering the first patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer with a charge-conducting layer before the step of curing.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising a step of covering the second patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer with a charge-conducting layer before the step of curing the second patterned layer.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising a step of performing the step of curing the first patterned layer in an inert gas ambient.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
146 words
A method for forming a giant magnetoresistive device comprising the steps of: providing a substrate; forming a patterned shield layer on the substrate; forming a first read spacer on the patterned shield layer; forming a giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensor on the first read spacer; forming a second read spacer on the GMR sensor; forming a shared shield/pole structure over the second read spacer; forming a first patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer over the shared shield/pole structure; crosslinking the first patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C.; forming a conductive coil on the cured first patterned layer; forming a second layer patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer over the conductive coil; crosslinking the second patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C.; and forming a second pole piece layer of magnetic material to complete the magnetic head.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
146 words
A method for forming a giant magnetoresistive device comprising the steps of: providing a substrate; forming a patterned shield layer on the substrate; forming a first read spacer on the patterned shield layer; forming a giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensor on the first read spacer; forming a second read spacer on the GMR sensor; forming a shared shield/pole structure over the second read spacer; forming a first patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer over the shared shield/pole structure; crosslinking the first patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C.; forming a conductive coil on the cured first patterned layer; forming a second layer patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer over the conductive coil; crosslinking the second patterned layer by electron irradiation at a temperature less than about 175 C.; and forming a second pole piece layer of magnetic material to complete the magnetic head.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method of claim 8 further comprising a step of covering the first patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer with a charge-conducting layer before the step of curing.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
35 words
The method of claim 9 further comprising a step of depositing a write gap layer comprising nonmagnetic material over a portion of the shared shield/pole structure after the step of crosslinking the second patterned layer.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method of claim 9 further comprising a step of depositing a write gap layer comprising nonmagnetic material over a portion of the shared shield/pole structure before the step of forming the first patterned layer of uncrosslinked polymer.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
12 words
The method of claim 9 wherein the uncrosslinked polymer comprises positive photoresist.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of claim 9 further comprising a step of covering the second patterned layer of the uncrosslinked polymer with a charge-conducting layer before the step of curing the second patterned layer.