Patent ID: 7843667

Claim:
A thin film magnetic head comprising: a magnetoresistive element having a stacked structure to detect a signal magnetic field from a magnetic recording medium; a first magnetic shield layer provided on one side of the magnetoresistive element in a stacked direction a second magnetic shield layer provided on the other side of the magnetoresistive element; a thin film coil generating a magnetic flux; a main magnetic pole layer provided on the opposite side of the first magnetic shield layer from the magnetoresistive element, the main magnetic pole layer conducting the magnetic flux to the magnetic recording medium so that the magnetic recording medium is magnetized in the direction orthogonal to its surface; a third magnetic shield layer provided between the main magnetic pole layer and the second magnetic shield layer; and a return yoke layer provided on the opposite side of the third magnetic shield layer from the main magnetic pole layer; each of the first magnetic shield layer, second magnetic shield layer, third magnetic shield layer, and return yoke layer including cutaway portions, wherein a width in a track width direction of at least one of the first and the second magnetic shield layers is smaller than widths in a track width direction of the third magnetic shield layer and the return yoke layer.