Patent ID: 7377024

Claim:
A method of fabricating a thin film magnetic recording head comprising the steps of: forming a main pole piece on a wafer; depositing a gap layer over the main pole piece; depositing a layer of selected material for a trailing shield throat pad over the gap layer, the selected material being different from a material of the gap layer; patterning a first photoresist pad over a selected area on the layer of selected material, selected areas defining the trailing shield throat pad with a front edge disposed in a plane which is recessed from a predetermined plane for an air-bearing surface; removing the selected material exposed around the first photoresist pad to form the trailing shield throat pad from the selected material and to expose the gap layer between the trailing shield throat pad and the predetermined plane for the air-bearing surface; removing the first photoresist pad; patterning a second photoresist to form a void for a trailing shield, the void extending from a first side of the predetermined plane for the air-bearing surface beyond the front edge of the trailing shield throat pad; and depositing ferromagnetic material for the trailing shield into the void to form a peninsula on a portion of the trailing shield between the front edge of the trailing shield throat pad and the predetermined plane for the air-bearing surface.