International Business Machines Corporation

Hoki Kim

Toshiaki Kirihata

David R Hanson

John W Golz

Gregory J Fredeman

Geng Wang

John Edward Barth, Jr

Paul Christian Parries

Kangguo Cheng

Chandrasekharan Kothandaraman

Matthew R Wordeman

Deok-Kee Kim

Byeongju Park

John Matthew Safran

David R Hansen

Embodiments of the present invention provide a memory array of dual part cells and design structure thereof. The memory array has a pair of twisted write bit lines and a pair of twisted read bit lines for each column. The twist is made by alternating the vertical position of each bit line pair in each section of a column, with the result of generating common mode nose and of reducing differential mode noise.

Three dimensional twisted bitline architecture for multi-port memory

The present invention provides structures for antifuses that utilize electromigration for programming. By providing a portion of antifuse link with high resistance without conducting material and then by inducing electromigration of the conducting material into the antifuse link, the resistance of the antifuse structure is changed. By providing a terminal on the antifuse link, the change in the electrical properties of the antifuse link is detected and sensed. Also disclosed are an integrated antifuse with a built-in sensing device and a two dimensional array of integrated antifuses that can share programming transistors and sensing circuitry.

Electrical antifuse with integrated sensor

Disclosed is a DRAM circuit that incorporates an improved reference cell, has half the capacitance of the memory cell, does not require a particular reference voltage, and can be formed using the same fabrication processes as the memory cell. This DRAM circuit comprises a memory cell with a single trench capacitor and a reference cell having two trench capacitors. The two reference cell trench capacitors are connected in series through a merged buried capacitor plate such that they provide half the capacitance of the memory cell trench capacitor. Additionally, the reference cell trench capacitors have essentially the same structure as the memory cell trench capacitor so that they can be formed in conjunction with the memory cell trench capacitor. Also disclosed are a design structure for the above-described memory circuit and a method for forming the above-described memory circuit.

Dynamic random access memory circuit, design structure and method

A system including a DRAM memory device on an integrated circuit (IC) using a control logic device to initiate a body refresh operation to provide a means for maintaining a low voltage at a floating body and discourage data loss, and a design structure including the DRAM memory device embodied in a machine readable medium is provided. A plurality of DRAM cells are connected to a first word line circuit and a first bit line circuit. The control logic device is coupled to the DRAM memory device and the IC for initiating the body refresh cycle. The control logic communicates with a first bit line and word line circuits and communicates with a reference word line and bit line circuits. A sense amplifier circuit and signal is provided for amplifying the voltage at the first bit line and the reference bit line. The body refresh cycle includes deactivating the first word line voltage while the first bit line and reference bit line voltages continue.

Floating body control in SOI DRAM

A system and method wherein a DRAM memory device on an integrated circuit (IC) uses a control logic device to initiate a body refresh operation for maintaining a low voltage at a floating body and discourage data loss. A plurality of DRAM cells are connected to a first word line circuit and a first bit line circuit. The control logic device is coupled to the DRAM memory device and the IC for initiating the body refresh cycle. The control logic communicates with a first bit line and word line circuits and communicates with a reference word line and bit line circuits. A sense amplifier circuit and signal is provided for amplifying the voltage at the first bit line and the reference bit line (or bit line bar circuit). The body refresh cycle includes deactivating the first word line voltage while the first bit line and reference bit line voltages continue.

A memory array of dual part cells has a pair of twisted write bitlines and a pair of twisted read bitlines for each column. The twist is made by alternating the vertical position of each bitline pair in each section of a column, with the result of generating common mode nose and of reducing differential mode noise.

A multi-port DRAM having refresh cycles interleaved with normal read and write operations implements a single cycle refresh sequence by deferring the write portion of the sequence until the next refresh cycle. During a single clock cycle, the system writes stored data from a refresh buffer into a row in the memory array and then reads data from one row of the memory array into the buffer.

Single cycle refresh of multi-port dynamic random access memory (DRAM)

A random access memory (RAM), such as a dynamic RAM (DRAM) or embedded DRAM (eDRAM) on a CMOS integrated circuit (IC) logic chip. Memory banks drive one line of a connected global data line pair to develop a difference signal on the pair. Simultaneously, a global signal monitor line discharges to develop a signal that mirrors the signal developing on one of the pair. When the global signal monitor line discharges sufficiently to indicate that the difference signal is large enough to sense, a global sense control sets a global data sense amplifier, the memory banks drive shuts off, and the global sense control initiates restoring global data line.

DRAM with self-resetting data path for reduced power consumption

An electronic memory system includes a memory array of a number of pair of bitlines comprising a true bitline and a complementary bitline. A first normal cell connects to the true bitline (BT) and a second normal cell connects to the complementary bitline (BC). A first reference cell connects to the true bitline and a second reference cell connects to the complementary bitline. A clock generates timing pulses including short circuiting-equalization pulses and selectively provides reference potential pulses in a reference potential mode of operation. A sense amplifier has a true terminal connected to the true bitline and a complementary terminal connected to the complementary bitline. An equalization short circuiting circuit connects to the clock and to the true bitline and the complementary bitline for short circuiting the true bitline and the complementary bitline together in response to the short circuiting pulses to equalize the electric potential thereon as a function of short circuiting-equalization. A precharge circuit connects at least one of the true bitline and the complementary bitline to an electrical potential selected from a higher voltage or low voltage reference potential in response to a precharge equalization clock pulse from the clock generator.

Bi-mode sense amplifier with dual utilization of the reference cells and dual precharge scheme for improving data retention

A memory system includes a memory array, a plurality of wordline drivers, a row address decoder block which has a plurality of outputs connected to selected ones of the wordline drivers, a row selector block which has a selector lines connected to individual ones of the wordline drivers. A power management circuit having a power down input for a power down input signal (WLPWRDN) and a wordline power down output (WLPDN) is connected to the wordline drivers to lower the power consumption thereof as a function of the power down input signal.

Low power manager for standby operation of memory system

Low power manager for standby operation of a memory system

A multi-port memory architecture utilizing an open bitline configuration for the read bitline is described. The memory is sub-divided into two arrays (A and B) consisting of memory gain cells arranged in a matrix formation, the cells having two general ports or separate read and write ports to enable simultaneous a read and write operation. Each memory array includes a reference wordline coupled to reference cells. When the reference cell is accessed, the read bitline (RBL) discharges to a level at half the value taken by a cell storing a 0 or 1. Each pair of RBLB in the same column of the two arrays is coupled to a differential sense amplifier, and each write bitline (WBL) in the two arrays is linked to write drivers WBLs in the two arrays are driven to the same voltage and at the same slew rate. The WBL swing in each array creates coupling noise by the bitline-to-bitline capacitors. For a given sense amplifier and its associated RBLs, the coupling creates an identical coupling noise on RBLA and RBLB that are positioned in the two arrays A and B. This common mode noise is rejected by the differential sense amplifier. Thus, a read sense amplifier can accurately discriminate between the signal by activating the cell by way of RWL, and the reference cell by way of REFWL.

Multi-port memory architecture

In a DRAM, which includes a plurality of memory banks, there is a pair of separate flag bit registers for each bank with the flag bit registers that are shifted up/down respectively. A comparator for each bank provides a comparator output. An arbiter for each bank is connected to receive a flag bit up signal and a flag bit down signal from the flag bit registers for that bank and the comparator output from the comparator for that bank. The arbiters are connected to receive a conflict in signal and to provide a conflict out signal. The pair of flag bit registers represent a refresh status of each bank and designate memory banks or arrays that are ready for a refresh operation.

Dynamic random access memory with smart refresh scheduler

A memory array includes a true bitline and a complementary bitline and a sense amplifier connected thereto; a row of normal cells with capacitors for data storage and bitline storage capacitors. A row of dummy cells with dummy cell capacitors is also provided. A clock provides wordline drive signals to the normal cells. When operating in the test mode, the clock provides at least one dummy wordline drive signal to the dummy cell switch in response to a testing signal for connecting the dummy cell capacitor to the bitline. A plurality of rows of dummy cells can be employed with various permutations of actuation thereof to provide various levels of capacitance connected to the bitlines in the test mode.

Cell data margin test with dummy cell

A method is provided for accessing a storage cell of a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) having an array of gain cells being read accessible by a read wordline and a read bitline, and being write accessible by a write wordline and write bitline separate from said read wordline and read bitline. The method includes activating a read wordline of the array of gain cells to permit signals from a plurality of gain cells coupled to the read wordline to develop on a plurality of corresponding read bitlines coupled to the gain cells. An interlock signal is then generated in the DRAM after activating the read wordline. The read wordline is then deactivated in response to the interlock signal.

Growing community of inventors

Hopewell Junction, NY, United States of America

Hoki Kim