JPH1153712A - Planar type thin film magnetic head - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) Abstract: A terminal structure capable of directly using a wiring assembly process similar to that of a general inductive type or MR type can be easily formed by photolithography technology. SOLUTION: A magnetic layer or a conductive layer having a predetermined shape is formed on a substrate 10 or a substrate protective film, an insulating layer is formed over substantially the entire surface of the substrate, and the surface of the magnetic layer or the conductive layer is formed by flattening the insulating layer. Is repeated, the magnetic yoke part 12, the coil 14, the magnetic pole part 16, and the terminal connection part 30 connected to the coil end are disassembled into a plurality of layers and laminated one by one. And the coil and terminal connection portion are buried in an insulating material, and a magnetic pole portion appears on the surface. A terminal portion 40 extending in the substrate surface direction and connected to one end of the terminal connection portion is buried in the substrate or in an insulating material on the substrate, and the terminal portion is also cut at a cut surface of a single head of the substrate, whereby the head is cut. Terminal surface 40 on the side
a appears.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a planar type thin film magnetic head and a method of manufacturing the same. More specifically, the present invention relates to a conventional general-purpose thin-film magnetic head in which a terminal surface for external connection appears on a side surface of the head. The present invention relates to a planar thin-film magnetic head which can use the same wiring assembling process as an inductive or MR thin-film magnetic head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Thin-film magnetic heads are generally of the inductive type or MR type.
Although the shape is known, there is another structure called a planar shape. In the induction type and the MR type, since the magnetic pole, gap film, coil film, etc. are sequentially formed on the ceramic substrate, the film formation direction (film stacking direction)
Is a direction parallel to the air bearing surface (the surface facing the magnetic recording medium). On the other hand, in the planar type, as shown in FIG. 7, when forming the magnetic yoke portion 12, the coil 14, the magnetic pole portion 16, the terminal connection portion 18 and the like on the ceramic substrate 10, they are disassembled into a number of layers. By repeating the steps of forming each layer (magnetic layer or conductive layer) having a predetermined shape, forming an insulating layer over almost the entire surface of the substrate, and exposing the surface of the magnetic layer or conductive layer by flattening, the magnetic yoke portion and the coil are formed. Since the magnetic pole portion and the terminal connection portion are laminated one by one, the formation direction of each layer is a floating surface (indicated by the symbol f).
The direction is perpendicular to. Alumina or the like is used for the insulating material 20.

In the induction type and the MR type, since the terminals of the coil can be formed in the same manner as other films, the terminals are formed on the side surface of the head perpendicular to the air bearing surface. On the other hand, the planar type employs a configuration in which a through hole 22 is formed in the ceramic substrate 10, a conductive material 24 is adhered to the inner wall surface, and the through hole 22 is connected to the terminal connection portion 18 on the floating surface side. Therefore, in the planar type thin film magnetic head, the floating surface f
Is the surface side of the ceramic substrate 10, the terminal surface 24
Is the back surface of the ceramic substrate 10 (surface parallel to the air bearing surface)
Will be provided.

[0004]

In the conventional planar type thin film magnetic head, the terminals are exposed on the back surface of the ceramic substrate, and therefore are different from the general induction type or MR type. Appears on the side of the head), and the wiring assembling process of the existing inductive or MR type thin film magnetic head cannot be used as it is. In other words, a large change in the process is required in connecting the wiring members and attaching the gimbal.

The ceramic substrate 10 has a small through hole 2
2 has to be opened and the conductive material 24 must be adhered to the inner surface thereof, and there is a problem that the step of forming the terminals is complicated and processing is difficult.

An object of the present invention is to provide a planar thin-film magnetic head having a terminal structure capable of directly using the same wiring assembling process as that of a general induction type or MR type. Another object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a planar thin-film magnetic head in which terminals can be easily formed collectively by photolithography on a substrate.

[0007]

According to the present invention, a magnetic layer or conductive layer having a predetermined shape is formed on a substrate or a substrate protective film, an insulating layer is formed over substantially the entire surface of the substrate, and the insulating layer is planarized. By repeating the step of exposing the surface of the magnetic layer or the conductive layer according to the above, the magnetic yoke part, the coil and the magnetic pole part, and the terminal connection part connected to the coil end are disassembled into a plurality of layers and laminated one by one. A planar type thin film magnetic head having a structure in which a magnetic yoke portion, a coil, and a terminal connection portion are buried in an insulating material and a magnetic pole portion appears on the surface. Here, a feature of the present invention resides in that a terminal portion extending in the in-plane of the substrate and connected to one end of the terminal connection portion is buried in the substrate or in an insulating material on the substrate, and the terminal portion is cut at a cut surface of the head alone of the substrate. Is that the terminal surface is exposed on the side surface of the head.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the present invention, a terminal surface can be made to appear on a side surface of a head as follows. A first method is to form a groove in a substrate or a substrate protective film, form a terminal portion in the groove, extend the terminal connection portion from the terminal portion surface, and cut the substrate into a single head. In this method, the terminal portion is also cut at the same time so that the terminal surface is exposed on the side surface of the head. In the second method, a terminal portion is formed on a substrate or a substrate protective film, and the terminal portion is buried in the insulator by a step of covering the surface with an insulator and flattening so that the surface of the terminal portion is exposed. In this method, the terminal connection portion extends from the surface of the terminal portion, and when the substrate is cut into a single head, the terminal portion is simultaneously cut to expose the terminal surface on the side surface of the head.

In any case, in these methods, a terminal portion can be formed by photolithography, and the terminal surface can be exposed on the side surface of the head by cutting the substrate (cutting and separating the head alone).

[0010]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a main portion showing an embodiment of a planar type thin film magnetic head according to the present invention. A plurality of head element portions are formed on the substrate 10 regularly and horizontally in the same manner as in the prior art. Here, an insulating material (for example, a ceramic substrate such as alumina) is used as the substrate.

Each of the head element portions is formed on a substrate 10 by forming a magnetic layer or a conductive layer having a predetermined shape, forming an insulating layer over substantially the entire surface of the substrate, and flattening the insulating layer. By repeating the process of exposing the surface, the magnetic yoke part 12, the coil 14, the magnetic pole part 16, and the terminal connection part 30 connected to the end of the coil are decomposed into a plurality of layers and formed one by one. Thereby, the magnetic yoke part 12, the coil 14, and the terminal connection part 30 are buried in the insulating material 20, and the magnetic pole part 16 appears on the surface thereof.
It goes without saying that the magnetic yoke part 12 and the magnetic pole part 16 are made of a magnetic layer, and the coil 14 and the terminal connection part 30 are made of a conductive layer. The insulating material 20 is, for example, alumina. Each layer is formed by a sputtering method or the like.

In the present invention, a terminal portion 40 extending in the in-plane direction of the substrate and connected to one end of the terminal connection portion 30 is embedded in the substrate 10 in advance. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the substrate is patterned into a shape substantially corresponding to the terminal portion with the photoresist 42, and the groove 44 is dug by a technique such as wet etching. The cross-sectional shape of the groove 44 to be formed substantially corresponds to the shape of the terminal surface described later. next,
The terminal portion 40 is formed by patterning the terminal portion in the groove 44 with the photoresist 46. The terminal portion 40 is formed by filling the conductive material layer and removing the photoresist 46. Such a substrate 10
Is used to provide a head element portion thereon,
The terminal connection part 30 is provided so as to be placed on the surface of the terminal part 40.

As shown in FIG. 3, a large number of such head element portions are regularly and vertically arranged on the substrate 10 (in the enlarged portion, the head element portion and the like are seen through. (In reality, coils and terminals are not visible from the outside because they are buried in an insulator.) Then, at the position indicated by the broken line (indicated by the symbol s), the head is cut and separated into individual heads. Terminal part 40
Are formed so as to extend so as to slightly cross the cutting position indicated by the broken line. When the terminal section 40 and the head element section are formed in this way and cut and separated into individual heads at the broken line position, the terminal section 40 is also cut near the end and the terminal surface appears on the side surface of the head. FIG. 4 shows the appearance of the finally processed planar thin film magnetic head. Since the terminal surface 40a appears on the side surface of the planar thin-film magnetic head 50, it becomes the same as a general inductive or MR thin-film magnetic head, and the wiring assembly process used for them can be used as it is. In FIG. 4, the bottom surface is the floating surface. In FIG. 1, reference numeral f denotes an air bearing surface, and reference numeral s denotes a cut / separation surface for the head alone. A terminal surface 40a appears on the cut / separation surface s, and an external lead wire is connected to the terminal surface 40a. Will be.

When the substrate is made of a conductive material (for example, silicon crystal, etc.) instead of an insulating ceramic material, a substrate protective film made of an insulating material is formed on the surface of the substrate. The terminal portion may be accommodated in a groove provided in the substrate protection film. Further, in this embodiment, only one coil is drawn for simplicity of the drawing, but the coil may have a multilayer structure of two or more layers. Needless to say, the number of turns of the coil, the shape of the magnetic yoke portion and the magnetic pole portion can be changed as appropriate.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a main part showing another embodiment of the planar type thin film magnetic head according to the present invention. The head element section is the same as in the above embodiment, and a large number of head element sections are arranged on the substrate 60 regularly and horizontally. Here, a conductive material (for example, a substrate such as a silicon crystal) is used as the substrate 60, and a substrate protective film 62 (for example, alumina or the like) is provided thereon.

Each of the head element portions includes a magnetic layer or a conductive layer having a predetermined shape, an insulating layer covering almost the entire surface of the substrate,
By repeating the step of exposing the surface of the magnetic layer or the conductive layer by flattening the insulating layer, the magnetic yoke part 12, the coil 14, the magnetic pole part 16, and the terminal connection part 30 connected to the coil end are formed of a plurality of layers. The magnetic yoke portion 12, the coil 14, and the terminal connection portion 30 are buried in the insulating material 20, and the magnetic pole portion 16 appears on the surface thereof.

A terminal portion 70 extending in advance in the substrate plane on the substrate protection film 62 and connected to one end of the terminal connection portion 30
And buried in the insulating material 64. In particular,
As shown in FIG. 6, the substrate protective film 6 is
A terminal portion 70 is formed by patterning into a terminal portion shape on 2 and a layer of an insulating material 64 is formed thereon, followed by planarization to expose the terminal portion surface. Using such a substrate,
A head element portion is provided thereon, and at that time, a terminal portion 70 is provided.
The terminal connection part 30 is provided so that it may be mounted on a board.

Also in this case, the terminal portion 70 extends so as to slightly cross the cutting position of the head alone. When the terminal section 70 and the head element section are formed in this manner and cut and separated into individual heads, the terminal section is also cut at the same time as in the above embodiment, and the terminal surface 70a appears. In the final processed planar type thin film magnetic head, since the terminal surface appears on the side of the head, it is the same as a general inductive type or MR type thin film magnetic head, and the wiring assembly process used for them can be used as it is. Become like

[0019]

According to the present invention, since the terminal surface for external connection is exposed on the side of the head as described above, the structure is the same as that of the inductive type thin film magnetic head and the like, so that the existing wiring assembly technology can be used. Become. In addition, since the photolithography technique can be applied to the formation of the terminal portion as in the case of the other components, there is no need for the step of forming a through-hole by etching as in the related art, and there is an advantage that the terminal can be easily manufactured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a main part of an embodiment of a planar type thin film magnetic head according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of a manufacturing process of the terminal portion.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of a wafer on which a large number of head element portions are arranged and formed.

FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of the planar type thin-film magnetic head after processing.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a principal part showing another embodiment of the planar type thin-film magnetic head according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of a manufacturing process of the terminal portion.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a main part of a conventional planar thin-film magnetic head.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Substrate 12 Magnetic yoke part 14 Coil 16 Magnetic pole 20 Insulating material 30 Terminal connection part 40 Terminal part 40a Terminal surface

Claims (3)

[Claims] A magnetic layer or conductive layer having a predetermined shape is formed on a substrate or a substrate protective film, an insulating layer is formed over substantially the entire surface of the substrate, and the surface of the magnetic layer or conductive layer is formed by flattening the insulating layer. By repeating the step of exposing, the magnetic yoke part, the coil and the magnetic pole part, and the terminal connection part connected to the coil end are disassembled into a plurality of layers and laminated one by one,
As a result, in a planar thin-film magnetic head having a structure in which the magnetic yoke portion, the coil and the terminal connection portion are buried in the insulating material, and the magnetic pole portion appears on the surface, it extends in the substrate or in the insulating material on the substrate in the in-plane direction of the substrate. And a terminal portion connected to one end of the terminal connection portion is buried,
A planar thin-film magnetic head, wherein a terminal surface is exposed on a side surface of the head by cutting the terminal portion at a cut surface of the head alone of the substrate. 2. A magnetic layer or conductive layer having a predetermined shape is formed on a substrate or a substrate protective film, an insulating layer is formed over substantially the entire surface of the substrate, and the surface of the magnetic layer or conductive layer is formed by flattening the insulating layer. By repeating the step of exposing, the magnetic yoke part, the coil and the magnetic pole part, and the terminal connection part connected to the coil end are disassembled into a plurality of layers and laminated one by one,
Accordingly, in a method of manufacturing a planar type thin-film magnetic head in which a magnetic yoke part, a coil, and a terminal connection part are embedded in an insulating material so that a magnetic pole part appears on a surface, a groove is formed in a substrate or a substrate protection film. A planar part in which a terminal part is formed in the groove, the terminal connecting part extends from the surface of the terminal part, and when the substrate is cut into a single head, the terminal part is simultaneously cut to expose a terminal surface on a side surface of the head. Of manufacturing a thin film magnetic head. 3. A magnetic layer or conductive layer having a predetermined shape is formed on a substrate or a substrate protective film, an insulating layer is formed over substantially the entire surface of the substrate, and the surface of the magnetic layer or conductive layer is formed by flattening the insulating layer. By repeating the step of exposing, the magnetic yoke part, the coil and the magnetic pole part, and the terminal connection part connected to the coil end are disassembled into a plurality of layers and laminated one by one,
Accordingly, in a method of manufacturing a planar thin-film magnetic head in which a magnetic yoke part, a coil and a terminal connection part are embedded in an insulating material so that a magnetic pole part appears on the surface, a terminal part is formed on a substrate or a substrate protection film. Forming a terminal portion in a state where the terminal portion is embedded in an insulator by a step of flattening the surface of the terminal portion so as to be exposed after covering the surface with an insulator, so that the terminal connection portion extends from the surface of the terminal portion. And a method of manufacturing a planar thin-film magnetic head in which when the substrate is cut into a single head, the terminal portion is cut at the same time to expose a terminal surface on the side surface of the head.