Effect of contact conditions during thermo-mechanical contact between a thermal flying height control slider and a disk asperity

A three-dimensional thermo-mechanical model is developed for the transient contact between a thermal flying height control (TFC) slider and a disk asperity. The effect of contact conditions is investigated, including the friction coefficient and the circumferential disk velocity. The damage of the read–write shields due to contacts with disk asperities is studied along with the maximum temperature at the location of the read element. The effect of diameter and material properties of the asperity is also investigated. Strong dependence of deformation and maximum temperature is observed as a function of the diameter and material properties of the asperity.