Patent ID: 8547804

Claim:
A thermally-assisted magnetic recording head, the magnetic recording head including an optical waveguide that is formed inside a slider and composed of a core and a cladding, the magnetic recording head comprising a first laser-beam absorber or reflector, the first absorber or reflector being disposed around the cladding of the optical waveguide, the first absorber or reflector being disposed in a manner surrounding the cladding of the optical waveguide, the first absorber or reflector in contact with the cladding of the optical waveguide, a portion of the first absorber or reflector in contact with the cladding being disposed closer to a central portion of the optical waveguide than other structures provided inside the slider; wherein the first absorber or reflector surrounds all four sides of the cladding of the optical waveguide, and the first absorbers or reflectors disposed in a manner surrounding the four sides are interconnected in an annular shape.