MAGNETORESISTANCE EFFECT HEAD, ITS MANUFACTURE EFFECT HEAD, AND MAGNETIC RECORDING APPARATUS USING THE MAGNETORESISTANCE

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a magnetoresistance effect head, which is made easily and in which a sense current does not bypass a barrier layer, to provide its manufacturing method and a magnetic recording apparatus which uses the magnetoresistance effect head. SOLUTION: This magnetoresistance effect head uses an MTJ film, which is composed fundamentally of a free layer 2, a barrier layer 3, a fixation layer 4 and a layer 5, to be fixed. An oxide layer and a nitride layer 1 which are obtained by oxidizing or nitrifying a metal material, which constitutes the fixation layer 4 and the layer 5 to be fixed are formed on. Thereby, it is possible to obtain magnetoresistance effect head, in which the noise of a reproducing waveform is small, as compared with conventional cases and in which the S/N ratio and the bit error rate are satisfactory. In addition, a magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus and a magnetic recording apparatus, which are of high performance, can be obtained by using the magnetoresistance effect head.