A magnetic recording device includes a main pole, a coil around the main pole, a trailing shield, and a leading shield. A trailing gap is between the main pole and the trailing shield. In one embodiment, the trailing gap includes a non-magnetic conductive material. In another embodiment, the trailing gap includes a spin torque oscillator device. A leading gap is between the main pole and the leading shield. The leading gap includes a non-magnetic conductive material. The main pole is coupled to a first terminal. The trailing shield coupled to a second terminal. The leading shield is coupled to a third terminal.

A method involves determining a threshold error rate that will result on data stored on a magnetic disk surface of a disk drive being unrecoverable. The method also involves determining a seek velocity that will overwrite sufficient portions of the data such the data will exhibit at least the threshold error rate. The disk drive performs at least one traversal of the magnetic disk surface with a head of the disk drive that emits an erase field during the at least one traversal at the seek velocity. The at least one traversal sanitizes the data.

A recording head has a first magnetic writer and a second magnetic writer offset from the first magnetic writer in a downtrack and crosstrack direction. The recording head has leads configured to deliver respective first and second write and/or laser currents to the first and second writers. The first and second write and/or laser currents enable the first and second writers to simultaneously write to adjacent tracks of a magnetic disk.

A recording head has a first magnetic writer and a second magnetic writer offset from the first magnetic writer in a downtrack and crosstrack direction. The recording head has leads configured to deliver respective first and second write and/or laser currents to the first and second writers. The first and second write and/or laser currents enable the first and second writers to simultaneously write to adjacent tracks of a magnetic disk.

A method involves determining a threshold error rate that will result on data stored on a magnetic disk surface of a disk drive being unrecoverable. The method also involves determining a seek velocity that will overwrite sufficient portions of the data such the data will exhibit at least the threshold error rate. The disk drive performs at least one traversal of the magnetic disk surface with a head of the disk drive that emits an erase field during the at least one traversal at the seek velocity. The at least one traversal sanitizes the data.

A recording head has a first magnetic writer and a second magnetic writer offset from the first magnetic writer in a downtrack and crosstrack direction. The recording head has leads configured to deliver respective first and second write and/or laser currents to the first and second writers. The first and second write and/or laser currents enable the first and second writers to simultaneously write to adjacent tracks of a magnetic disk.

According to one embodiment, a magnetic recording apparatus includes a spin-torque oscillator, a recording unit, and a controller. The spin-torque oscillator includes an oscillation layer. The recording unit includes at least one recording layer. Magnetization reversal in each recording layer is performed by excitation of cooperative dynamics between magnetization of the oscillation layer and magnetization of the recording layer. The controller controls precession of the magnetization of the oscillation layer, which is induced by application of an electric current to the spin-torque oscillator.