Patents Assigned to UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR
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Publication number: 20120087174Abstract: A memory using mixed valence conductive oxides is disclosed. The memory includes a mixed valence conductive oxide that is less conductive in its oxygen deficient state and a mixed electronic ionic conductor that is an electrolyte to oxygen and promotes an electric field effective to cause oxygen ionic motion.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 16, 2011Publication date: April 12, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: DARRELL RINERSON, CHRISTOPHE J. CHEVALLIER, WAYNE KINNEY, ROY LAMBERTSON, STEVEN W. LONGCOR, JOHN E. SANCHEZ, JR., LAWRENCE SCHLOSS, PHILIP F.S. SWAB, EDMOND WARD
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Publication number: 20120075914Abstract: A low read current architecture for memory. Bit lines of a cross point memory array are allowed to be charged by a selected word line until a minimum voltage differential between a memory state and a reference level is assured.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 4, 2011Publication date: March 29, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: BRUCE BATEMAN, DARRELL RINERSON, CHRISTOPHE CHEVALLIER, CHANG HUA SIAU
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Publication number: 20120069620Abstract: A multiple-type memory is disclosed. The multiple-type memory includes memory blocks in communication with control logic blocks. The memory blocks and the control logic blocks are configured to emulate a plurality of memory types. The memory blocks can be configured into a plurality of memory planes that are vertically stacked upon one another. The vertically stacked memory planes may be used to increase data storage density and/or the number of memory types that can be emulated by the multiple-type memory. Each memory plane can emulate one or more memory types. The control logic blocks can be formed in a substrate (e.g., a silicon substrate including CMOS circuitry) and the memory blocks or the plurality of memory planes can be positioned over the substrate and in communication with the control logic blocks. The multiple-type memory may be non-volatile so that stored data is retained in the absence of power.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 22, 2011Publication date: March 22, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120069621Abstract: Interface circuitry in communication with at least one non-volatile resistivity-sensitive memory is disclosed. The memory includes a plurality of non-volatile memory elements that may have two-terminals, are operative to store data as a plurality of conductivity profiles that can be determined by applying a read voltage across the memory element, and retain stored data in the absence of power. A plurality of the memory elements can be arranged in a cross-point array configuration. The interface circuitry electrically communicates with a system configured for memory types, such as DRAM, SRAM, and FLASH, for example, and is operative to communicate with the non-volatile resistivity-sensitive memory to emulate one or more of those memory types. The interface circuitry can be fabricated in a logic plane on a substrate with at least one non-volatile resistivity-sensitive memory vertically positioned over the logic plane. The non-volatile resistivity-sensitive memories may be vertically stacked upon one another.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 22, 2011Publication date: March 22, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120069665Abstract: A system and a method for emulating a NAND memory system are disclosed. In the method, a command associated with a NAND memory is received. After receipt of the command, a vertically configured non-volatile memory array is accessed based on the command. In the system, a vertically configured non-volatile memory array is connected with an input/output controller and a memory controller. The memory controller is also connected with the input/output controller. The memory controller is operative to interface with a command associated with a NAND memory and based on the command, to access the vertically configured non-volatile memory array for a data operation, such as a read operation or write operation. An erase operation on the vertically configured non-volatile memory array is not required prior to the write operation. The vertically configured non-volatile memory array can be partitioned into planes, blocks, and sub-planes, for example.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 22, 2011Publication date: March 22, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120063200Abstract: A FIFO with data storage implemented with non-volatile third dimension memory cells is disclosed. The non-volatile third dimension memory cells can be fabricated BEOL on top of a substrate that includes FEOL fabricated active circuitry configured for data operations on the BEOL memory cells. Other components of the FIFO that require non-volatile data storage can also be implemented as registers or the like using the BEOL non-volatile third dimension memory cells so that power to the FIFO can be cycled and data is retained. The BEOL non-volatile third dimension memory cells can be configured in a single layer of memory or in multiple layers of memory. An IC that includes the FIFO can also include one or more other memory types that are emulated using the BEOL non-volatile third dimension memory cells and associated FEOL circuitry configured for data operations on those memory cells.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 22, 2011Publication date: March 15, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120063191Abstract: Performing data operations using non-volatile third dimension memory is described, including a storage system having a non-volatile third dimension memory array configured to store data, the data including an address indicating a file location on a disk drive, and a controller configured to process an access request associated with the disk drive, the access request being routed to the non-volatile third dimension memory array to perform a data operation, wherein data from the data operation is used to create a map of the disk drive. In some examples, an address in the non-volatile third dimension memory array provides an alias for another address in a disk drive.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 22, 2011Publication date: March 15, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120063239Abstract: Circuitry and a method for indicating a multiple-type memory is disclosed. The multiple-type memory includes memory blocks in communication with control logic blocks. The memory blocks and the control logic blocks are configured to emulate a plurality of memory types. The memory blocks can be configured into a plurality of vertically stacked memory planes. The vertically stacked memory planes may be used to increase data storage density and/or the number of memory types that can be emulated by the multiple-type memory. Each memory plane can emulate one or more memory types. The control logic blocks can be formed in a substrate (e.g., a silicon substrate including CMOS circuitry) and the memory blocks or the plurality of memory planes can be positioned over the substrate and in communication with the control logic blocks. The multiple-type memory may be non-volatile so that stored data is retained in the absence of power.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 22, 2011Publication date: March 15, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120064691Abstract: A treated conductive element is provided. A conductive element can be treated by depositing either a reactive metal or a very thin layer of material on the conductive element. The reactive metal (or very thin layer of material) would typically be sandwiched between the conductive element and an electrode. The structure additionally exhibits non-linear IV characteristics, which can be favorable in certain arrays.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 21, 2011Publication date: March 15, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: DARRELL RINERSON, WAYNE KINNEY, EDMOND R. WARD, STEVE KUO-REN HSIA, STEVEN W. LONGCOR, CHRISTOPHE J. CHEVALLIER, JOHN SANCHEZ, PHILIP F. S. SWAB
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Publication number: 20120057394Abstract: The various embodiments of the invention relate generally to semiconductors and memory technology. More specifically, the various embodiment and examples of the invention relate to memory devices, systems, and methods that protect data stored in one or more memory devices from unauthorized access. The memory device may include third dimension memory that is positioned on top of a logic layer that includes active circuitry in communication with the third dimension memory. The third dimension memory may include multiple layers of memory that are vertically stacked upon each other. Each layer of memory may include a plurality of two-terminal memory elements and the two-terminal memory elements can be arranged in a two-terminal cross-point array configuration. At least a portion of one or more of the multiple layers of memory may include an obfuscation layer configured to conceal data stored in one or more of the multiple layers of memory.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 15, 2011Publication date: March 8, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120043521Abstract: A memory cell including a memory element comprising an electrolytic insulator in contact with a conductive metal oxide (CMO) is disclosed. The CMO includes a crystalline structure and can comprise a pyrochlore oxide, a conductive binary oxide, a multiple B-site perovskite, and a Ruddlesden-Popper structure. The CMO includes mobile ions that can be transported to/from the electrolytic insulator in response to an electric field of appropriate magnitude and direction generated by a write voltage applied across the electrolytic insulator and CMO. The memory cell can include a non-ohmic device (NOD) that is electrically in series with the memory element. The memory cell can be positioned between a cross-point of conductive array lines in a two-terminal cross-point memory array in a single layer of memory or multiple vertically stacked layers of memory that are fabricated over a substrate that includes active circuitry for data operations on the array layer(s).Type: ApplicationFiled: November 3, 2011Publication date: February 23, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: LAWRENCE SCHLOSS, JULIE CASPERSON BREWER, WAYNE KINNEY, RENE MEYER
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Publication number: 20120037879Abstract: An ion barrier layer made from a dielectric material in contact with an electronically insulating layer is operative to prevent mobile ions transported into the electronically insulating layer from passing through the ion barrier layer and into adjacent layers during data operations on a non-volatile memory cell. A conductive oxide layer in contact with the electronically insulating layer is the source of the mobile ions. A programming data operation is operative to transport a portion of the mobile ions into the electronically insulating layer and an erase data operation is operative to transport the mobile ions back into the conductive oxide layer. When the portion is positioned in the electronically insulating layer the memory cell stores data as a programmed conductivity profile and when a substantial majority of the mobile ions are positioned in the conductive oxide layer the memory cell stores data as an erased conductivity profile.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 25, 2011Publication date: February 16, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: LAWRENCE SCHLOSS, RENE MEYER, WAYNE KINNEY, ROY LAMBERTSON, JULIE CASPERSON BREWER
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Publication number: 20120033481Abstract: A memory cell including conductive oxide electrodes is disclosed. The memory cell includes a memory element operative to store data as a plurality of resistive states. The memory element includes a layer of a conductive metal oxide (CMO) (e.g., a perovskite) in contact with an electrode that may comprise one or more layers of material. At least one of those layers of material can be a conductive oxide (e.g., a perovskite such as LaSrCoO3—LSCoO or LaNiO3—LNO) that is in contact with the CMO. The conductive oxide layer can be selected as a seed layer operative to provide a good lattice match with and/or a lower crystallization temperature for the CMO. The conductive oxide layer may also be in contact with a metal layer (e.g., Pt). The memory cell additionally exhibits non-linear IV characteristics, which can be favorable in certain arrays, such as non-volatile two-terminal cross-point memory arrays.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 13, 2011Publication date: February 9, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: DARRELL RINERSON, WAYNE KINNEY, EDMOND R. WARD, STEVE KUO-REN HSIA, STEVEN LONGCOR, CHRISTOPHE J. CHEVALLIER, JOHN SANCHEZ, PHILIP F. S. SWAB
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Publication number: 20120026780Abstract: A memory cell including a memory element comprising an electrolytic insulator in contact with a conductive metal oxide (CMO) is disclosed. The CMO includes a crystalline structure and can comprise a pyrochlore oxide, a conductive binary oxide, a multiple B-site perovskite, and a Ruddlesden-Popper structure. The CMO includes mobile ions that can be transported to/from the electrolytic insulator in response to an electric field of appropriate magnitude and direction generated by a write voltage applied across the electrolytic insulator and CMO. The memory cell can include a non-ohmic device (NOD) that is electrically in series with the memory element. The memory cell can be positioned between a cross-point of conductive array lines in a two-terminal cross-point memory array in a single layer of memory or multiple vertically stacked layers of memory that are fabricated over a substrate that includes active circuitry for data operations on the array layer(s).Type: ApplicationFiled: October 4, 2011Publication date: February 2, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: LAWRENCE SCHLOSS, JULIE CASPERSON BREWER, WAYNE KINNEY, RENE MEYER
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Publication number: 20120023288Abstract: Accessing a non-volatile memory array is described, including receiving a first data and a memory address associated with the first data, writing the first data to the non-volatile memory array at the memory address of the first data without erasing a second data stored in the non-volatile memory array at the memory address of the first data before writing the first data.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 4, 2011Publication date: January 26, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN
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Publication number: 20120020143Abstract: A two-terminal memory cell including a Schottky metal-semiconductor contact as a selection device (SD) allows selection of two-terminal cross-point memory array operating voltages that eliminate “half-select leakage current” problems present when other types of non-ohmic devices are used. The SD structure can comprise a “metal/oxide semiconductor/metal” or a “metal/lightly-doped single layer polycrystalline silicon.” The memory cell can include a two-terminal memory element including at least one conductive oxide layer (e.g., a conductive metal oxide—CMO, such as a perovskite or a conductive binary oxide) and an electronically insulating layer (e.g., yttria-stabilized zirconia—YSZ) in contact with the CMO. The SD can be included in the memory cell and configured electrically in series with the memory element. The memory cell can be positioned in a two-terminal cross-point array between a pair of conductive array lines (e.g., a bit line and a word line) across which voltages for data operations are applied.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 27, 2011Publication date: January 26, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: ROY LAMBERTSON, LAWRENCE SCHLOSS
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Publication number: 20120012897Abstract: A non-Flash non-volatile cross-trench memory array formed using an array of trenches formed back-end-of-the-line (BEOL) over a front-end-of-the-line (FEOL) substrate includes two-terminal memory elements operative to store at least one bit of data that are formed at a cross-point of a first trench and a second trench. The first and second trenches are arranged orthogonally to each other. At least one layer of memory comprises a plurality of the first and second trenches to form a plurality of memory elements. The non-volatile memory can be used to replace or emulate other memory types including but not limited to embedded memory, DRAM, SRAM, ROM, and FLASH. The memory is randomly addressable down to the bit level and erase or block erase operation prior to a write operation are not required.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 18, 2011Publication date: January 19, 2012Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: PAUL BESSER, ROBIN CHEUNG, WEN ZHONG KONG
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Publication number: 20110315948Abstract: Memory cell formation using ion implant isolated conductive metal oxide is disclosed, including forming a bottom electrode below unetched conductive metal oxide layer(s), forming the unetched conductive metal oxide layer(s) including depositing at least one layer of a conductive metal oxide (CMO) material (e.g., PrCaMnOx, LaSrCoOx, LaNiOx, etc.) over the bottom electrode. At least one portion of the layer of CMO is configured to act as a memory element without etching, and performing ion implantation on portions of the layer(s) of CMO to create insulating metal oxide (IMO) regions in the layer(s) of CMO. The IMO regions are positioned adjacent to electrically conductive CMO regions in the unetched layer(s) of CMO and the electrically conductive CMO regions are disposed above and in contact with the bottom electrode and form memory elements operative to store non-volatile data as a plurality of conductivity profiles (e.g., resistive states indicative of stored data).Type: ApplicationFiled: August 23, 2011Publication date: December 29, 2011Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: DARRELL RINERSON, JONATHAN BORNSTEIN, DAVID HANSEN, ROBIN CHEUNG, STEVEN W. LONGCOR, RENE MEYER, LAWRENCE SCHLOSS
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Publication number: 20110315943Abstract: Memory cell formation using ion implant isolated conductive metal oxide is disclosed, including forming a bottom electrode below un-etched conductive metal oxide layer(s), forming the un-etched conductive metal oxide layer(s) including depositing at least one layer of a conductive metal oxide (CMO) material (e.g., PrCaMnOx, LaSrCoOx, LaNiOx, etc.) over the bottom electrode. At least one portion of the layer of CMO is configured to act as a memory element without etching, and performing ion implantation on portions of the layer(s) of CMO to create insulating metal oxide (IMO) regions in the layer(s) of CMO. The IMO regions are positioned adjacent to electrically conductive CMO regions in the un-etched layer(s) of CMO and the electrically conductive CMO regions are disposed above and in contact with the bottom electrode and form memory elements operative to store non-volatile data as a plurality of conductivity profiles (e.g., resistive states indicative of stored data).Type: ApplicationFiled: September 2, 2011Publication date: December 29, 2011Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventors: DARRELL RINERSON, JONATHAN BORNSTEIN, DAVID HANSEN, ROBIN CHEUNG, STEVEN W. LONGCOR, RENE MEYER, LAWRENCE SCHLOSS
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Publication number: 20110310658Abstract: Combined memories in integrated circuits are described, including determining a first requirement for logic blocks, determining a second requirement for memory blocks including a vertical configuration for the memory blocks, and compiling a design for the integrated circuit using the first requirement and the second requirement. The memory blocks may include non-volatile two-terminal cross-point memory arrays. The non-volatile two-terminal cross-point memory arrays can be formed on top of a logic plane. The logic plane can be fabricated in a substrate. The non-volatile two-terminal cross-point memory arrays may be vertically stacked upon one another to form a plurality of memory planes. The memory planes can be portioned into sub-planes. One or more different memory types such as Flash, SRAM, DRAM, and ROM can be emulated by the plurality of memory planes and/or sub-planes. The non-volatile two-terminal cross-point memory arrays can include a plurality of two-terminal memory elements.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 1, 2011Publication date: December 22, 2011Applicant: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATIONInventor: ROBERT NORMAN