Film head read resolution and frequency response analysis

The read resolution of a ferrite recording head is determined by its gap length, which also determines its writability. However, under broad conditions of practical interest, the read resolution of a film head can be shown to depend primarily on the sum of the poletip and gap lengths P1 + g + P2. This permits choosing the sum to give needed resolution while independently optimizing the gap for writing. This paper describes conditions under which the resolution of a head is determined by: 1. gap and head-to-medium spacing, 2. the sum of poletip and gap lengths (PgP for short), and head-to-medium spacing, or 3. head-to-medium spacing only. Pure longitudinal recording is assumed, and the resolution determining factors are derived by a closed form frequency analysis.