Programmable air bearing slider including magnetic read/write element

摘要

An air bearing slider according to the present in­vention provides a programmable slider wherein the fly height of a the read/write head may be conveniently controlled using electrical signals. In an air bearing slider according to the present invention, the rear of the slider is made to fly lower by altering the angle of attack of a rear air bearing region. In one embodi­ment of the present invention, a slider configuration includes a first air bearing region (31) at the leading edge of the slider and a second air bearing region (32) at the slider's trailing edge. The first air bearing region includes a tapered region (37). A deformable central region (33), including a non air bearing surface, joins the first and second air bearing regions and controls the relative angle between the air bearing surfaces. The relative angle is adjusted by deforming the central region using a layer of e.g. piezoelectric material which overlays the central region. A conventional read/write head is placed on the rear portion of the second air bearing region.