A data storage device is disclosed comprising a head actuated over a magnetic media, wherein the head comprises a write element and a first read element. A preamp circuit comprising an interface includes at least a write line associated with the write element of the head and a first read line associated with the first read element of the head. A first read signal is received from the preamp circuit over the first read line during a read operation, and configuration data is transmitted to the preamp circuit over the first read line during a write operation.

Described are heat assisted magnetic read-write heads that include a coupler, a waveguide, a transducer, and appurtenant structures, as well as related methods.

A wiring circuit board includes an insulating layer and a conductive layer disposed on a front surface of the insulating layer. The conductive layer includes a first wiring, a first terminal electrically connected to the first wiring, a second wiring independent of the first wiring and having a thick thickness T2 with respect to a thickness T1 of the first wiring, and a second terminal electrically connected to the second wiring. The surfaces of the first terminal and the second terminal are disposed at generally the same position in a thickness direction.

Described are magnetic recording heads that include a read transducer and a write transducer, with the two transducers being arranged in a side-by-side configuration.

A device including a near field transducer, the near field transducer including gold (Au) and at least one other secondary atom, the at least one other secondary atom selected from: boron (B), bismuth (Bi), indium (In), sulfur (S), silicon (Si), tin (Sn), hafnium (Hf), niobium (Nb), manganese (Mn), antimony (Sb), tellurium (Te), carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and oxygen (O), and combinations thereof; erbium (Er), holmium (Ho), lutetium (Lu), praseodymium (Pr), scandium (Sc), uranium (U), zinc (Zn), and combinations thereof; and barium (Ba), chlorine (Cl), cesium (Cs), dysprosium (Dy), europium (Eu), fluorine (F), gadolinium (Gd), germanium (Ge), hydrogen (H), iodine (I), osmium (Os), phosphorus (P), rubidium (Rb), rhenium (Re), selenium (Se), samarium (Sm), terbium (Tb), thallium (Th), and combinations thereof.

There is provided an oriented body containing platinum group-substituted-6 iron oxide particles typified by Rh-substituted ε-iron oxide or Ru-substituted ε-iron oxide applicable to MAMR, MIMR, or F-MIMR system, and a technique related thereto, containing platinum group element-substituted ε-iron oxide particles in which a part of ε-iron oxide is substituted with at least one element of platinum group elements, as magnetic particles wherein the degree of orientation of the magnetic particles defined by the degree of orientation=SQ (direction of magnetization easy-axes)/SQ (direction of magnetization hard-axes) exceeds 5.0, and a coercive force exceeds 31 kOe.

The magnetic recording medium disclosed in the present application includes a non-magnetic support, an undercoat layer, a magnetic layer containing magnetic particles, and a back coat layer. The coercive force Hc of the magnetic layer in the thickness direction at 25° C. is not 4100 oersteds (Oe) or more, and the coercive force Hc of the magnetic layer in the thickness direction at a temperature between 55° C. and 80° C. inclusive is not less than 1200 oersteds (Oe) and not more than 3700 oersteds (Oe).

An apparatus comprises a slider configured to facilitate heat assisted magnetic recording and a submount affixed to the slider. A laser unit is affixed to the submount and comprises a laser operable in a non-lasing state and a lasing state. A heater is embedded in the laser unit or the submount. The heater is configured to generate preheat for heating the laser during the non-lasing state and to generate steering heat for heating the laser during the lasing state.

A thermally-assisted magnetic recording head includes a medium facing surface, a main pole, a waveguide, and a plasmon generator. The plasmon generator includes a first metal layer and a second metal layer. The first metal layer includes a plasmon exciting portion on which surface plasmons are excited. The second metal layer is located on the first metal layer, and includes a bottom surface in contact with the first metal layer, a top surface located on a side opposite to the bottom surface, a front end face that is located in the medium facing surface and generates near-field light from the surface plasmons, and a connecting surface that connects the top surface and the front end face. The connecting surface includes an inclined portion inclined relative to a direction perpendicular to the medium facing surface.

An apparatus comprises a write pole for writing data to a magnetic recording medium and a near-field transducer (NFT) optically coupled to a laser source and configured to produce a thermal spot on the medium. A laser driver applies laser operation power (Iop) to the laser source. A channel circuit generates symbols having a length of nT, where T is a channel clock rate and n is an integer. The laser driver applies Iop to the laser source and a write driver applies bi-directional write currents to the write pole to record the symbols at a location of the thermal spot on the medium, wherein a duration of applying Iop to the laser source by the laser driver is dependent on a length of the symbols and the effective thermal spot size.