Abstract: Several embodiments of flash EEPROM split-channel cell arrays are described that position the channels of cell select transistors along sidewalls of trenches in the substrate, thereby reducing the cell area. Select transistor gates are formed as part of the word lines and extend downward into the trenches with capacitive coupling between the trench sidewall channel portion and the select gate. In one embodiment, trenches are formed between every other floating gate along a row, the two trench sidewalls providing the select transistor channels for adjacent cells, and a common source/drain diffusion is positioned at the bottom of the trench. A third gate provides either erase or steering capabilities. In another embodiment, trenches are formed between every floating gate along a row, a source/drain diffusion extending along the bottom of the trench and upwards along one side with the opposite side of the trench being the select transistor channel for a cell.

Abstract: A mother/daughter card non-volatile memory system includes a daughter card containing the memory and a mother card containing the memory controller and host interface circuits. The daughter memory card contains as little more than the memory cell array as is practical, in order to minimize its cost, and has an interface for connecting with a variety of mother controller cards having physical attributes and host interfaces according to a number of different published or proprietary memory card standards. Different types of memory cards may be used when the operating parameters of the memory are stored within it in a protected location, the mother card controller then reading these parameters and adapting its operation accordingly. A radio frequency antenna may be included on a surface of the card along with its electrical contacts, in order to provide a radio frequency identification function.

Abstract: A flash NAND type EEPROM system with individual ones of an array of charge storage elements, such as floating gates, being capacitively coupled with at least two control gate lines. The control gate lines are preferably positioned between floating gates to be coupled with sidewalls of floating gates. The memory cell coupling ratio is desirably increased, as a result. Both control gate lines on opposite sides of a selected row of floating gates are usually raised to the same voltage while the second control gate lines coupled to unselected rows of floating gates immediately adjacent and on opposite sides of the selected row are kept low. The control gate lines can also be capacitively coupled with the substrate in order to selectively raise its voltage in the region of selected floating gates. The length of the floating gates and the thicknesses of the control gate lines can be made less than the minimum resolution element of the process by forming an etch mask of spacers.

Abstract: A flash NAND type EEPROM system with individual ones of an array of charge storage elements, such as floating gates, being capacitively coupled with at least two control gate lines. The control gate lines are preferably positioned between floating gates to be coupled with sidewalls of floating gates. The memory cell coupling ratio is desirably increased, as a result. Both control gate lines on opposite sides of a selected row of floating gates are usually raised to the same voltage while the second control gate lines coupled to unselected rows of floating gates immediately adjacent and on opposite sides of the selected row are kept low. The control gate lines can also be capacitively coupled with the substrate in order to selectively raise its voltage in the region of selected floating gates. The length of the floating gates and the thicknesses of the control gate lines can be made less than the minimum resolution element of the process by forming an etch mask of spacers.

Abstract: A very small computer memory card is densely packed with a large number of flash EEPROM integrated circuit chips. A computer memory system provides for the ability to removably connect one or more of such cards with a common controller circuit that interfaces between the memory cards and a standard computer system bus. Alternately, each card can be provided with the necessary controller circuitry and thus is connectable directly to the computer system bus. An electronic system is described for a memory system and its controller within a single memory card. In a preferred physical arrangement, the cards utilize a main circuit board with a plurality of sub-boards attached thereto on both sides, each sub-board carrying several integrated circuit chips.

Abstract: A flash NAND type EEPROM system with individual ones of an array of charge storage elements, such as floating gates, being capacitively coupled with at least two control gate lines. The control gate lines are preferably positioned between floating gates to be coupled with sidewalls of floating gates. The memory cell coupling ratio is desirably increased, as a result. Both control gate lines on opposite sides of a selected row of floating gates are usually raised to the same voltage while the second control gate lines coupled to unselected rows of floating gates immediately adjacent and on opposite sides of the selected row are kept low. The control gate lines can also be capacitively coupled with the substrate in order to selectively raise its voltage in the region of selected floating gates. The length of the floating gates and the thicknesses of the control gate lines can be made less than the minimum resolution element of the process by forming an etch mask of spacers.

Abstract: A flash NAND type EEPROM system with individual ones of an array of charge storage elements, such as floating gates, being capacitively coupled with at least two control gate lines. The control gate lines are preferably positioned between floating gates to be coupled with sidewalls of floating gates. The memory cell coupling ratio is desirably increased, as a result. Both control gate lines on opposite sides of a selected row of floating gates are usually raised to the same voltage while the second control gate lines coupled to unselected rows of floating gates immediately adjacent and on opposite sides of the selected row are kept low. The control gate lines can also be capacitively coupled with the substrate in order to selectively raise its voltage in the region of selected floating gates. The length of the floating gates and the thicknesses of the control gate lines can be made less than the minimum resolution element of the process by forming an etch mask of spacers.

Abstract: Several embodiments of flash EEPROM split-channel cell arrays are described that position the channels of cell select transistors along sidewalls of trenches in the substrate, thereby reducing the cell area. Select transistor gates are formed as part of the word lines and extend downward into the trenches with capacitive coupling between the trench sidewall channel portion and the select gate. In one embodiment, trenches are formed between every other floating gate along a row, the two trench sidewalls providing the select transistor channels for adjacent cells, and a common source/drain diffusion is positioned at the bottom of the trench. A third gate provides either erase or steering capabilities. In another embodiment, trenches are formed between every floating gate along a row, a source/drain diffusion extending along the bottom of the trench and upwards along one side with the opposite side of the trench being the select transistor channel for a cell.

Abstract: Novel memory cells utilize source-side injection, allowing very small programming currents. If desired, to-be-programmed cells are programmed simultaneously while not requiring an unacceptably large programming current for any given programming operation. In one embodiment, memory arrays are organized in sectors with each sector being formed of a single column or a group of columns having their control gates connected in common. In one embodiment, a high speed shift register is used in place of a row decoder to serially shift in data for the word lines, with all data for each word line of a sector being contained in the shift register on completion of its serial loading. In one embodiment, speed is improved by utilizing a parallel loaded buffer register which receives parallel data from the high speed shift register and holds that data during the write operation, allowing the shift register to receive serial loaded data during the write operation for use in a subsequent write operation.

Abstract: A flash NAND type EEPROM system with individual ones of an array of charge storage elements, such as floating gates, being capacitively coupled with at least two control gate lines. The control gate lines are preferably positioned between floating gates to be coupled with sidewalls of floating gates. The memory cell coupling ratio is desirably increased, as a result. Both control gate lines on opposite sides of a selected row of floating gates are usually raised to the same voltage while the second control gate lines coupled to unselected rows of floating gates immediately adjacent and on opposite sides of the selected row are kept low. The control gate lines can also be capacitively coupled with the substrate in order to selectively raise its voltage in the region of selected floating gates. The length of the floating gates and the thicknesses of the control gate lines can be made less than the minimum resolution element of the process by forming an etch mask of spacers.

Abstract: Novel memory cells utilize source-side injection, allowing very small programming currents. If desired, to-be-programmed cells are programmed simultaneously while not requiring an unacceptably large programming current for any given programming operation. In one embodiment, memory arrays are organized in sectors with each sector being formed of a single column or a group of columns having their control gates connected in common. In one embodiment, a high speed shift register is used in place of a row decoder to serially shift in data for the word lines, with all data for each word line of a sector being contained in the shift register on completion of its serial loading. In one embodiment, speed is improved by utilizing a parallel loaded buffer register which receives parallel data from the high speed shift register and holds that data during the write operation, allowing the shift register to receive serial loaded data during the write operation for use in a subsequent write operation.

Abstract: Enclosed re-programmable non-volatile memory cards include at least two sets of electrical contacts to which the internal memory is connected. The two sets of contacts have different patterns, preferably in accordance with two different contact standards such as a memory card standard and that of the Universal Serial Bus (USB). One memory card standard that can be followed is that of the Secure Digital (SD) card. The cards can thus be used with different hosts that are compatible with one set of contacts but not the other. A cover that is hinged to the card to normally cover one set of contacts can be rotated out of the way by hand when that set of contacts is being used.

Abstract: A non-volatile memory system, such as a flash EEPROM system, is disclosed to be divided into a plurality of blocks and each of the blocks into one or more pages, with sectors of data being stored therein that are of a different size than either the pages or blocks. One specific technique packs more sectors into a block than pages provided for that block. Error correction codes and other attribute data for a number of user data sectors are preferably stored together in different pages and blocks than the user data.

Abstract: A flash memory card structure with an external contact structure according to a published standard, such as the USB standard, also includes a second data transmission path, such as a wireless one. A removable cap fits over the card to cover the external contacts when they are not being used as a memory data path. One of two or more different caps may be selected to be placed on the card in order to control operation of the second data transmission path, such as to select the distance of wireless transmission from one of two or more pre-set distances. Power to operate the memory card through the second path, when not connected to a host, may also be provided through the external contacts by including a battery in the caps.

Abstract: A system of Flash EEprom memory chips with controlling circuits serves as non-volatile memory such as that provided by magnetic disk drives. Improvements include selective multiple sector erase, in which any combinations of Flash sectors may be erased together. Selective sectors among the selected combination may also be de-selected during the erase operation. Another improvement is the ability to remap and replace defective cells with substitute cells. The remapping is performed automatically as soon as a defective cell is detected. When the number of defects in a Flash sector becomes large, the whole sector is remapped. Yet another improvement is the use of a write cache to reduce the number of writes to the Flash EEprom memory, thereby minimizing the stress to the device from undergoing too many write/erase cycling.

Abstract: A peripheral card having a Personal Computer (“PC”) card form factor and removably coupled externally to a host system is further partitioned into a mother card portion and a daughter card portion. The daughter card is removably coupled to the mother card. In the preferred embodiment, a low cost flash “floppy” is accomplished with the daughter card containing only flash EEPROM chips and being controlled by a memory controller residing on the mother card. Other aspects of the invention includes a comprehensive controller on the mother card able to control a predefined set of peripherals on daughter cards connectable to the mother card; relocation of some host resident hardware to the mother card to allow for a minimal host system; a mother card that can accommodate multiple daughter cards; daughter cards that also operates directly with hosts having embedded controllers; daughter cards carrying encoded data and information for decoding it; and daughter cards with security features.