Mechanical Performance Study of Pattern Media-Based Head-Disk Systems

Bit-pattern media is a promising approach for further increasing the recording density of future magnetic disk drives. Also, future high density recording requires further reduction of the magnetic spacing between head-slider and disk-media. As a result, the chance of slider-disk contact will be increased and the stress caused by such contact becomes an important issue for future disk drives. This paper reports authors' efforts in understanding the stress distribution due to asperity micro contacts. An elastic-plastic contact analysis for the HDI, based on a finite element model, and two representative pattern media cases are investigated and presented in this paper. Simulation results for the contact pressure at asperity micro contacts and subsurface von Mises equivalent stress are presented as well.