Patent ID: 8873352

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: a near-field transducer located proximate a media-facing surface; a waveguide configured to couple light to the near-field transducer, the waveguide comprising a top cladding layer, a bottom cladding layer, and a core layer between the top and bottom cladding layers; a write pole facing the top cladding layer, the write pole comprising a flat portion substantially parallel to the core layer and a sloped portion extending from the flat portion of the write pole towards the media-facing surface at an angle to the core layer and to the media-facing surface; and a light mitigation layer located between the top cladding layer of the waveguide and at least one of the sloped portion of the write pole and the flat portion of the write pole, the light mitigation layer mitigating effects of stray light on the near-field transducer.