Track density constraints in the application of MR head technology

Demonstrations of high anal density magnetic recording using MR heads have kindled interest in the practical application of this technology to small form factor disk drives. The write-wide, read-narrow feature of the dual element head and its large velocity-independent signal promises substantial growth in track density and linear density. This paper examines the impact of some fundamental design and manufacturing constraints on the hack density and the selection of practical operating points. Recently reported heads have the MR reader separated from the inductive writer by a distance of several microns along the track. When used with a rotary actuator, this results in skew misalignment between the write track and the read track, which limits the practical track density. Previous models of track density with MR heads do not consider this case.