Patent ID: 6901651

Claim:
A method of manufacturing a thin-film magnetic head comprising: a medium facing surface that faces toward a recording medium; a coil that generates a magnetic field associated with information to be written on the recording medium; and a magnetic layer that defines a track width, allows a magnetic flux to pass therethrough, the magnetic flux corresponding to the magnetic field generated by the coil, and generates a magnetic field for writing the information on the recording medium, wherein the magnetic layer has: a pole portion layer that has one end exposed in the medium facing surface and generates the magnetic field for writing the information on the recording medium from the one end, the width of the one end defining the track width; and a yoke portion layer that is not exposed in the medium facing surface, is magnetically connected to the pole portion layer and introduces the magnetic flux corresponding to the magnetic field generated by the coil into the pole portion layer, the method comprising the steps of: forming the coil; and forming the magnetic layer, wherein the step of forming the magnetic layer includes the steps of: forming the pole portion layer; forming a protective layer so as to cover a part of the pole portion layer, the part being located near the one end; forming an electrode layer to be used as an electrode when forming the yoke portion layer by electroplating, so as to cover the pole portion layer and the protective layer; forming the yoke portion layer on the electrode layer by electroplating, using the electrode layer as the electrode; and removing an unnecessary portion of the electrode layer while the part of the pole portion layer located near the one end is covered with the protective layer.