Patent ID: 9685178
Date: 2017-06-20
CPC Classifications: G11B

Claim:
1. A lateral spin valve reader comprising: a channel layer having a first end at a bearing surface and a second end that is away from the bearing surface; a detector structure disposed over an upper surface of a first portion of the channel layer that is proximate to the first end of the channel layer; and a spin injection structure disposed below a lower surface of a second portion of the channel layer that is proximate to the second end of the channel layer, wherein an area of overlap between the spin injection structure and the second portion of the channel layer is substantially larger than an area of overlap between the detector structure and the first portion of the channel layer, and wherein a width of the spin injection structure in a direction parallel to the bearing surface is substantially larger than a width of the detector structure in the directional parallel to the bearing surface, and wherein the second portion of the channel layer comprises a region that is substantially wider than the first portion of the channel layer in the direction parallel to the bearing surface.