Patent ID: 8891196

Claim:
A method of reading and writing a magnetic recording medium using a magnetic head that has an element portion, the magnetic recording medium including a base, a metal film formed on the base, a protective film formed on the metal film, and a lubricating film formed on the protective film, the method comprising: reading and writing the magnetic recording medium while positioning the element portion of the magnetic head in the lubricating film, including: providing an acoustic emission (AE) element on the magnetic head, obtaining an AE signal from the AE element, and detecting, using the obtained AE signal, whether the element portion of the magnetic head is in contact with a surface of the lubricating film, is positioned in the lubricating film, or is in contact with a surface of the protective film, and obtaining a distance between the element portion and the surface of the lubricating film when the element portion of the magnetic head is positioned in the lubricating film.