A magnetoresistive sensor and method of making the same

摘要

A method of making an MR sensor having a nearly symmetric read sensitivity across the sensor by using permanent magnet boundary (26) control. The sensor's MR element is patterned to eliminate portions of the MR element (10) between the electrical contacts (12) which contribute to undesired read sensitivity. The MR element is maintained in a single domain state using abutting permanent magnets (22, 24) electrically isolated from the MR element.