Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione
Magnetoresistive head having manganese diffusion layer
 An MR head includes a soft magnetic (SAL) layer, a non-magnetic (SHUNT) layer, and a magnetoresistive (MR) layer, which are stacked on top of each other, with an antiferromagnetic layer being formed on the surface of the magnetoresistive layer except for the surface portion thereof corresponding to a track width (Tw) section. The Mn of the antiferromagnetic layer is diffused into region B of the magnetoresistive layer by heating, thereby enhancing the coercive force of region B. Due to this coercive force, the degree of single-magnetic-domain formation in the x-direction in the magnetoresistive layer increases. Thus, the MR head proves effective in reducing Barkhausen noise. Further, the layered structure can be manufactured at low cost by the same method as that for conventional exchange-bias-type MR heads. 
Alps Electric Co., Ltd.
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additional additional inventional inventional
Masamichi
Saito