Thermal Management in Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording

A slider thermal characterization system is described. A model for the dissipation of heat applied to the air-bearing surface of a hard disk drive slider is introduced. The model´s predictions are compared to the measured results from the characterization system. A modification to the model is shown to compensate for the experimental difference and indicates that thermal loads on a slider can be managed by a combination of physical separation and increased thermal conductivity in the regions where thermal loads occur