Patent ID: 8021535

Claim:
A method for making a perpendicular head comprising: fabricating a write pole structure on a first portion of a surface, said write pole structure comprising a write pole layer; fabricating a thick seed layer on a second portion of said surface, said thick seed layer having a boundary residing adjacent to said write pole structure, said boundary of said thick seed layer separated from said write pole structure by a distance T; depositing an ultra-thin seed layer on said write pole layer, and on at least a portion of said thick seed layer, such that electrical continuity is established between said thick seed layer and said ultra-thin seed layer; and, electroplating a shield structure over said write pole layer by conducting electrical current from said thick seed layer to at least a portion of said ultra-thin seed layer, wherein said ultra-thin seed layer functions as a non-magnetic top gap between said write pole layer and said shield structure, said distance T being greater than a thickness of said thick seed layer, said distance T being less than 15 microns.