Abstract: A method of programming a memory cell (100), the method comprising applying a first electric potential to a first electric terminal (101) of the memory cell (100) to accelerate first charge carriers of a first type of conductivity to thereby generate second charge carriers of a second type of conductivity by impact ionisation of the accelerated first charge carriers, and applying a second electric potential to a second electric terminal (102) of the memory cell (100) to accelerate the second charge carriers to thereby inject the second charge carriers in a charge trapping structure (103) of the memory cell (100).

Abstract: A method of programming a memory cell (100), the method comprising applying a first electric potential to a first electric terminal (101) of the memory cell (100) to accelerate first charge carriers of a first type of conductivity to thereby generate second charge carriers of a second type of conductivity by impact ionisation of the accelerated first charge carriers, and applying a second electric potential to a second electric terminal (102) of the memory cell (100) to accelerate the second charge carriers to thereby inject the second charge carriers in a charge trapping structure (103) of the memory cell (100).

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for operating an array of nonvolatile charge trapping memory devices. The method comprises before a block erase step (52) of substantially all of the non-volatile memory devices of the array, block programming (51) of substantially all of the non-volatile memory devices of the array. It is an advantage of the present invention that, by doing this, a further charge trapping nonvolatile memory device may be used as a reference cell, which is programmed and erased with the block-programming and block-erasing of the memory cells in the array, so that the reference cell shows the same cycling history as the memory cells in the array. This feature can be used for adapting read parameters to ageing of the memory cells. Corresponding devices are also provided.

Abstract: Semiconductor device comprising a vertical split gate non-volatile memory cell, for storing at least one bit, on a semiconductor substrate, comprising on the substrate a trench, a first active area, a second active area, a channel region extending along a sidewall of the trench, the trench having a length extending in a first direction and a width extending in a second direction perpendicular thereto and the trench being covered on the sidewalls by a tunnel oxide and including at least one gate stack of a floating gate and a control gate, wherein the control gate extends to the bottom part of the trench, a first floating gate is located at a left trench wall to form a first stack with the control gate, and a second floating gate is located at a right trench wall to form a second stack with the control gate.

Abstract: In the method for manufacturing a semiconductor device (100), which comprises a semiconducting body (1) having a surface (2) with a source region (3) and a drain region (4) defining a channel direction (102) and a channel region (101), a first stack (6) of layers on top of the channel region (101), the first stack (6) comprising, in this order, a tunnel dielectric layer (11), a charge storage layer (10) for storing an electric charge and a control gate layer (9), and a second stack (7) of layers on top of the channel region (101) directly adjacent to the first stack (6) in the channel direction (102), the second stack (7) comprising an access gate layer (14) electrically insulated from the semiconducting body (1) and from the first stack (6), initially a first sacrificial layer (90) is used, which is later replaced by the control gate layer (9).

Abstract: Fabrication of a memory cell, the cell including a first floating gate stack (A), a second floating gate stack (B) and an intermediate access gate (AG), the floating gate stacks (A, B) including a first gate oxide (4), a floating gate (FG), a control gate (CG; CGl, CGu), an interpoly dielectric layer (8), a capping layer (6) and side-wall spacers (10), the cell further including source and drain contacts (22), wherein the fabrication includes: defining the floating gate stacks in the same processing steps to have equal heights; depositing over the floating gate stacks a poly-Si layer (12) with a larger thickness than the floating gate stacks' height; planarizing the poly-Si layer (12); defining the intermediate access gate (AG) in the planarized poly-Si layer (14) by means of an access gate masking step over the poly-Si layer between the floating gate stacks and a poly-Si etching step.

Abstract: The present invention describes an array structure (10) for non-volatile semiconductor memory elements (14, 16) with a high area density. This high density is obtained by the combination of a commonly used virtual ground scheme and a 2-dimensional array of memory elements (14, 16). Wordlines (18, 20) connecting memory elements (14, 16) in a row or a column cross each other at insulated cross-points (22). Furthermore, the invention describes a possible fabrication process for such memory arrays.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a floating gate type semiconductor device on a substrate having a surface (2), and a device thus manufactured. The method comprises:—forming, on the substrate surface, a stack comprising an insulating film (4), a first layer of floating gate material (6) and a layer of sacrificial material (8),—forming at least one isolation zone (18) through the stack and into the substrate (2), the first layer of floating gate material (6) thereby having a top surface and side walls (26),—removing the sacrificial material (8), thus leaving a cavity (20) defined by the isolation zones (18) and the top surface of the first layer of floating gate material (6), and filling the cavity (20) with a second layer of floating gate material (22), the first layer of floating gate material (6) and the second layer of floating gate material (22) thus forming together a floating-gate (24).

Abstract: A method to improve the coupling ratio between a control gate (18) and a floating gate (14) of a floating gate non-volatile semiconductor device is described. In a stacked gate floating gate transistor according to the invention, a conductive spacer (24) is used at both sides of the stack. The conductive spacer (24) is galvanically connected to the control gate (18), preferably by means of a conductive layer (34), whereas it is separated from the floating gate (14) by means of an insulating layer (22). The capacitance (C1, C2) between both conductive spacers (24) and the side walls of the floating gate (14) adds up to the normal capacitance between control gate (18) and floating gate (14).