Achieving 1 Gbit/in/sup 2/ with inductive recording heads

By using a planar inductive head run in continuous contact with the media surface we have demonstrated an areal recording density of 1 Gb/in/sup 2/ This was achieved by first recognizing several fundamental limits on the areal density performance of inductive heads, then by developing a new transducer capable of overcoming these limitations. This paper describes a contact planar thin film head capable of a 1 Gb/in/sup 2/ areal density with a robust off-track error rate.