Microstructure patterned surfaces for integrated lead disk drive head suspensions

• Main Authors: Tobias, Kyle T, Sydlo, Darrell C, LaLonde, Lawrence E
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 22.09.2020
• Subjects: APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR; CINEMATOGRAPHY; DEAF-AID SETS; ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE; ELECTRICITY; ELECTROGRAPHY; HOLOGRAPHY; INFORMATION STORAGE; INFORMATION STORAGE BASED ON RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN RECORDCARRIER AND TRANSDUCER; LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKEACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; MATERIALS THEREFOR; ORIGINALS THEREFOR; PHOTOGRAPHY; PHOTOMECHANICAL PRODUCTION OF TEXTURED OR PATTERNED SURFACES,e.g. FOR PRINTING, FOR PROCESSING OF SEMICONDUCTORDEVICES; PHYSICS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS

Disk drive head suspension components having microstructured surfaces and a method for making the components. One embodiment of the method includes depositing a layer of photoimageable polymer having an associated set of process parameters including a minimum resolution and exposing the photoimageable polymer through a photomask having a microstructure-producing region with features below the minimum resolution for the photoimageable polymer. The exposed photoimageable polymer is developed to produce a layer of polymer having a thickness and a microstructured surface region with depressions that are less than the thickness of the polymer. In one embodiment the photomask has a microstructure-producing region with features sized and spaced between about 1 μm and 10 μm. Microstructured surfaces on structures such as flying leads, flying termination pads, cover coat layers and at insulating layer-trace interfaces and insulating layer-cover coat interfaces can be manufactured.