Optimum magnetic-head shape design for high-density recording

The optimum magnetic head shape suitable for high-density recording is determined by observing the head-to-tape contact for various head shapes and tapes by using transparent heads and an optical interference fringe method. The experiment proved that the use of heads with smaller r/R values and smaller head area at the trailing edge is highly effective for achieving contact and longer head life, where R is a radius of the head along its longitudinal direction and r is the radius along its transverse direction