Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 23 (2009) 2679~2685 www.springerlink.com/content/1738-494x DOI 10.1007/s12206-009-0521-2 Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology Simulation of a head slider considering a discrete track recording technology † Sang-Joon Yoon 1 , Seok-Ho Son 2 , Jihoon Kang 3 , Hyunki Kim 3 , Jingyoo Yoo 3 and Dong-Hoon Choi 1,* 1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul, 133-791, Korea 2 Graduate School of Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul, 133-791, Korea 3 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Suwon 443-742, Korea (Manuscript Received December 3, 2008; Revised May 6, 2009; Accepted May 14, 2009) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Abstract Discrete track recording (DTR) is a new application technology that utilizes a separate physical storage disk with grooves and ridges comprised of radial and circumferential direction in order to achieve higher data transfer rates and storage densities on a hard disk drive (HDD). However, the grooves and ridges on the DTR media cause flying stability issues. Therefore, we analyze and compare the dynamic performance of a head slider with three types of DTR media in which different DTR parameters are defined, such as groove width and pitch. Prior to simulations, we propose the DTR flying height (FH) loss equation which estimates a loss of FH on the DTR media using the defined DTR parameters. The accuracy and creditability of this equation is then predicted by comparing the results of the equation to those of the simulation. Consequently, we propose a method for designing the air bearing surface (ABS) on the DTR media using the static performance of the ABS on a continuous track recording (CTR) along with the proposed DTR FH loss equa- tion. Keywords: DTR (Discrete Track Recording); DTR FH loss; Flying stability -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Introduction A hard disk drive (HDD) constantly requires higher storage densities and data transfer. It is possible for a higher track density to make narrow write/read head elements because it depends on the write/read head width. However, the decrease in the width of the write/read head elements causes critical issues to oc- cur, such as the side-fringe effect of the write head, cross-talk from adjacent tracks, and difficulty fabri- cating the narrow write/head. It may be possible to overcome these drawbacks using discrete track re- cording (DTR) technology because the bits are stored on single tracks that are physically separated by grooves and ridges [1-3]. However, even though DTR technology offers many advantages, there are still design difficulties to consider. The flying behavior of a slider on the DTR media is different from that on continuous track re- cording (CTR) media due to the grooves and ridges covering the entire recording band. The loss of flying height (FH) and the fluctuation of a head slider when it is in steady-state with the DTR media and that of a head slider with the CTR media were comparatively investigated [4-6]. In this study, we analyzed the performance of a head slider on three types of DTR media modeled via defined parameters using the CML air bearing simu- lator. We determined the effect of the groove size and area ratio on the flying attitudes of a head slider from these results. In addition, we checked the empirical †This paper was recommended for publication in revised form by Associate Editor Jeonghoon Yoo * Corresponding author. Tel.: +82 2 2220 0443, Fax.: +82 2 2291 4070 E-mail address: dhchoi@hanyang.ac.kr © KSME & Springer 2009