Abstract: A technique for read or program verify (PV) operations for non-volatile memory is described. In one example, at the end of a program verify operation (e.g., during a program verify recovery phase), a number of wordlines near a selected wordline are ramped down one at a time. Ramping down wordlines near the selected wordline one at a time can significantly reduce the trapped charge in the channel, enabling lower program disturb rates and improved threshold voltage distributions. In one example, the same technique of ramping down wordlines near the selected wordline can be applied to a read operation.

Abstract: A semiconductor memory device includes a memory cell array to which a plurality of word lines are coupled, a voltage generation circuit configured to apply operating voltages to the plurality of word lines during a program operation, and a control logic configured to control the voltage generation circuit to perform a discharge operation for the plurality of word lines when an external power supply voltage is reduced during the program operation, wherein the control logic controls the voltage generation circuit such that, during the discharge operation, a potential level of a selected word line among the plurality of word lines is discharged, and then potential levels of the other unselected word lines are discharged.

Abstract: Non-volatile storage systems and method of operating non-volatile storage systems are disclosed. A crept up voltage on a memory cell control gate adjacent to a select gate is prevented, reduced, and/or discharged. In some aspects, the crept up voltage is not allowed to happen on the memory cell next to the select gate after a sensing operation. In some aspects, the voltage may creep up on the memory cell control gate after a sensing operation, but it is discharged. Reducing and/or preventing the crept up voltage may reduce the electric field between the dummy memory cell and select gate transistor. This may prevent, or at least reduce, changes in threshold voltage of the select gate transistor. Additional problems may also be solved by a reduction of the crept up voltage on the dummy memory cell control gates.

Abstract: Systems and methods for reducing trapped electrons within a NAND string are described. During a sensing operation, one or more control circuits may discharge or initiate discharge of control gates corresponding with contiguous memory cell transistors of a NAND string from a read pass voltage (e.g., 10V) to a second voltage less than the pass voltage (e.g., 2V) in an order starting from a first set of the contiguous memory cell transistors closest to the first end of the NAND string and ending with a second set of the contiguous memory cell transistors closest to the second end of the NAND string. Subsequently, the one or more control circuits may either concurrently or simultaneously discharge the control gates corresponding with the contiguous memory cell transistors from the second voltage to a third voltage less than the intermediate voltage (e.g., from 2V to 0V).

Abstract: Techniques for providing a semiconductor memory device are disclosed. In one particular exemplary embodiment, the techniques may be realized as a semiconductor memory device including a plurality of memory cells arranged in an array of rows and columns. Each memory cell including a first region, a second region, and a body region capacitively coupled to at least one word line and disposed between the first region and the second region. Each memory cell also including a third region, wherein the third region may be doped differently than the first region, the second region, and the body region.

Abstract: Techniques for providing a semiconductor memory device are disclosed. In one particular exemplary embodiment, the techniques may be realized as a semiconductor memory device including a plurality of memory cells arranged in an array of rows and columns. Each memory cell including a first region, a a second region, and a body region capacitively coupled to at least one word line and disposed between the first region and the second region. Each memory cell also including a third region, wherein the third region may be doped differently than the first region, the second region, and the body region.

Abstract: In MRAM, a write wiring clad in a ferromagnetic film has been used to reduce a write current or avoid disturbances. Besides, a CuAl wiring obtained by adding a trace of Al to a Cu wiring has been used widely to secure reliability of a high reliability product. There is a high possibility of MRAM being mounted in high reliability products so that reliability is important. Clad wiring however increases the resistance of the CuAl wiring, which is originally high, so that using both may fail to satisfy the specification of the wiring resistance. In the semiconductor device of the invention having plural copper-embedded wiring layers, copper wiring films of plural copper-embedded clad wirings configuring a memory cell matrix region of MRAM are made of relatively pure copper, while a CuAl wiring film is used as copper wiring films of copper-embedded non-clad wirings below these wiring layers.

Abstract: Methods, devices, and systems are disclosed relating to a memory cell having a floating body. A memory cell includes a transistor comprising a drain and a source each formed in silicon and a gate positioned between the drain and the source. The memory cell may further include a bias gate recessed into the silicon and positioned between an isolation region and the transistor. In addition, the bias gate may be configured to be operably coupled to a bias voltage. The memory cell may also include a floating body within the silicon. The floating body may include a first portion adjacent the source and the drain and vertically offset from the bias gate and a second portion coupled to the first portion. Moreover, the bias gate may be formed adjacent to the second portion.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention relate generally to semiconductors and semiconductor fabrication techniques, and more particularly, to devices, integrated circuits, memory cells and arrays, and methods to use silicon carbide structures to retain amounts of charge indicative of a resistive state in, for example, a charge-controlled resistor of a memory cell. In some embodiments, a memory cell comprises a silicon carbide structure including a charge reservoir configured to store an amount of charge carriers constituting a charge cloud. The amount of charge carriers in the charge cloud can represent a data value. Further, the memory cell includes a resistive element in communication with the charge reservoir and is configured to provide a resistance as a function of the amount of charge carriers in the charge reservoir. The charge reservoir is configured to modulate the size of the charge cloud to change the data value.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a semiconductor device, and more precisely to an 1-transistor type DRAM cell implemented using bulk silicon, a DRAM device and a DRAM comprising thereof and a driving method thereof and a manufacturing method thereof. The driving method of an 1-transistor type DRAM comprises: a data hold process biasing a word line at a negative voltage level and biasing a sensing line and a bit line at a first constant voltage level; a data purging process resetting data by biasing the word line at a second constant voltage level and biasing the sensing line and the bit line at the first constant voltage level; and a data write process allowing a write current to be flowed from the bit line to a floating body by rasing the bit line to the second constant voltage level and raising the sensing line to the half second constant voltage level, while maintaining the bias of the word line at the second constant voltage level.

Abstract: Methods, devices, and systems are disclosed relating to a memory cell having a floating body. A memory cell includes a transistor comprising a drain and a source each formed in silicon and a gate positioned between the drain and the source. The memory cell may further include a bias gate recessed into the silicon and positioned between an isolation region and the transistor. In addition, the bias gate may be configured to be operably coupled to a bias voltage. The memory cell may also include a floating body within the silicon. The floating body may include a first portion adjacent the source and the drain and vertically offset from the bias gate and a second portion coupled to the first portion. Moreover, the bias gate may be formed adjacent to the second portion.

Abstract: A semiconductor memory device includes: a semiconductor layer provided on an insulating substrate or an insulating layer; active areas each defined in the semiconductor layer with a device insulating film buried therein; and NAND cell units formed on the active areas, each NAND cell unit including a plurality of electrically rewritable and non-volatile memory cells connected in series, both ends of each NAND cell unit being coupled to a source line and a bit line, wherein the device has such a carrier discharging mode as to discharge channel carriers in the NAND cell unit to at least one of the source line and the bit line.

Abstract: A semiconductor memory device includes circuitry coupled to a plurality of memory cells with transistors. The circuitry is configured to change a potential of a body of the transistor to a degree depending on a charging state of the body. A gate electrode of the transistor is maintained in a non-addressed state.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an 1-transistor DRAM cell, a DRAM device and a manufacturing method therefor, a driving circuit for a DRAM, a driving method therefore, and a driving method for an 1-transistor DRAM, and a double-gate type 1-transistor DRAM. The present invention comprises a data hold process biasing a word line at a negative voltage level and biasing a sensing line and a bit line at a first constant voltage level; a data purging process resetting data by biasing the word line and the bottom word line at a second constant voltage level and biasing the sensing line and the bit line at the first constant voltage level; and a data write process biasing the word line and the bottom word line at the second constant voltage level and supplying a write data to the bit line.

Abstract: A memory controller provides interfaces for one or more thin film memory circuits. The controller may include an analog interface for one or more thin film memories. Such an analog interface may accept analog signals representative of an associated thin film memory's memory state, condition and sense the signal, and encode the signal into a digital value.

Abstract: An integrated circuit and a design structure are disclosed. An integrated circuit may comprise: a data retaining device; a partially depleted silicon-on-insulator (PD SOI) device electrically coupled to the data retaining device; and a measurement device coupled to the PD SOI device for measuring a state of the PD SOI device indicating a body voltage thereof, the measuring device being communicatively coupled to a calculating means which determines a history state of a data in the data retaining device based on the measured state of the PD SOI device.

Abstract: A NAND type flash memory array which is composed of a plurality of memory cells with a shallow junction on an SOI substrate to make the body region depleted fully when each channel of the memory cells is turned on is provided. The invention improves the efficiency of a reading operation, enables an erasing operation on the SOI structure and enables use of a low voltage VPASS instead of a high voltage VPASS, which is used for a programming operation in a conventional NAND type flash memory array, and therefore it diminishes programming disturbance more effectively than a conventional array.

Abstract: An analog memory may be formed using a phase change material. The phase change material may assume one of a number of resistance states which defines a specific analog characteristic to be stored.

Abstract: A system, method and program product for determining a history state of data in a data retaining device are disclosed. A state of a partially-depleted silicon-on-insulator (PD SOI) device coupled to a data retaining device is measured to indicate a body voltage of the PD SOI device. The body voltage of the PD SOI device may indicate, among others, how long the PD SOI device has been idling, which indirectly indicates how long data in the data retaining device has not been accessed. As such, the current invention may be used efficiently with, e.g., a cache replacement algorithm in a management of the data retaining device.

Abstract: A semiconductor memory device includes: a semiconductor layer provided on an insulating substrate or an insulating layer; active areas each defined in the semiconductor layer with a device insulating film buried therein; and NAND cell units formed on the active areas, each NAND cell unit including a plurality of electrically rewritable and non-volatile memory cells connected in series, both ends of each NAND cell unit being coupled to a source line and a bit line, wherein the device has such a carrier discharging mode as to discharge channel carriers in the NAND cell unit to at least one of the source line and the bit line.

Abstract: A memory device is formed on a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) structure, the SOI structure including a substrate, an insulating layer on the substrate, and a semiconductor film on the insulating layer. The memory device includes a memory array in a memory region of the SOI structure, a plurality of first substrate contacts in the peripheral region of the memory device, and a plurality of second substrate contacts in the memory region of the SOI structure, wherein the first substrate contacts and the second substrate contacts are formed in and over the semiconductor film and in the insulating layer and are electrically connected to the substrate of the SOI structure.

Abstract: A semiconductor integrated circuit device is provided, which includes a semiconductor layer formed via an embedded insulation film on a substrate and an FBC (Floating Body Cell) which stores data by accumulating a majority carrier in a floating channel body formed on the semiconductor layer.

Abstract: A two terminal, silicon based negative differential resistance (NDR) element is disclosed, to effectuate of NDR diode for selected applications. The two terminal device is based on a three terminal NDR-capable FET which has a modified channel doping profile, and in which the gate is tied to the drain. This device can be integrated through conventional CMOS processing with other NDR and non-NDR elements, including NDR capable FETs. A memory cell using such NDR two terminal element and an NDR three terminal is also disclosed.

Abstract: An SRAM capable of reducing the overall area consumed by the circuit and capable of improving the mobility and operational characteristics of a PMOS transistor is provided. The SRAM is formed on an SOI substrate having first and second active areas. A first access NMOS transistor and a first inverter, which is constituted by a first drive NMOS transistor and a first load PMOS transistor, are formed on the first active area of the SOI substrate. A second access NMOS transistor and a second inverter, which is constituted by a first drive NMOS transistor and a first load PMOS transistor, are formed on the second active area of the SOI substrate. Here, the channels of the first and second load PMOS transistors extend so that carriers move in a [110] silicon crystallization growth direction. In each active area, the drain (or source) of an access NMOS transistor, the drain of a drive NMOS transistor, and the drain of a load PMOS transistor contact one another in a shared region.

Abstract: The invention includes SOI constructions containing one or more memory cells which include a transistor and a thyristor. In one aspect, a scalable GLTRAM cell provides DRAM-like density and SRAM-like performance. The memory cell includes an access transistor and a gated-lateral thyristor integrally formed above the access transistor. The cathode region (n+) of the stacked lateral thyristor device (p+/n/p/n+) is physically and electrically connected to one of the source/drain regions of the FET to act as the storage node for the memory cell. The FET transistor can include an active region which extends into a Si/Ge material. The material comprising Si/Ge can have a relaxed crystalline lattice, and a layer having a strained crystalline lattice can be between the material having the relaxed crystalline lattice and the transistor gate. The device construction can be formed over a versatile substrate base.

Abstract: The present invention provides a semiconductor memory device and control method capable of effectively suppressing the generation of operating current originating in noise of address signals provided from the outside without impairing the operating speed during reading and writing. This semiconductor memory device is provided with a filter circuit (102) for removing noise contained in address signals provided from the outside, a circuit system containing an ATD circuit (311) for generating a first address transition detection signal (&phgr;ATD1) by detecting a change in an address signal prior to passing through the filter circuit (102), and a circuit system containing an ATD circuit (321) for generating a second address transition detection signal (&phgr;ATD2) by detecting a change in an address signal after passing through the filter circuit (102).

Abstract: A semiconductor memory device includes a plurality of N and P channel MOS transistors. The plurality of MOS transistors are formed on an SOI (Silicon On Insulator) substrate. Each MOS transistor includes a source region, a drain region, and a body region located between the source region and the drain region. The body region of at least one N channel MOS transistor is electrically fixed. The body region of at least one P channel MOS transistor is rendered floating.

Abstract: CMOS circuits are made resistant to erroneous signals produced by the impact of high energy charged particles (commonly known in the literature as Single Event Upset or SEU) by the addition of upset immune transistor structures into the circuits in such a way that they block and dissipate the erroneous signal. The added transistor structures are made immune to SEU by placing them in well diffusions that are separate from the rest of the circuit and biasing those wells such that the electric fields surrounding the transistors are very low in comparison to the rest of the circuit. Signal blocking is achieved with an SEU immune transistor that is in an “off” state whenever other circuit transistors that deliver signals through it are potentially sensitive to SEU. Dissipation is achieved with either a resistor or low current drive transistor that spreads the SEU signal out over time thereby reducing its voltage change to an acceptable level.

Abstract: An integrated circuit (10). The integrated circuit comprises a first SOI transistor (AT3) having a body and for performing first function. The integrated circuit further comprises a second SOI transistor (DT3) having a body and for performing a second function different than the first function. Lastly, the integrated circuit comprises a conductor (BT1) connecting the body of the first SOI transistor to the body of the second SOI transistor such that the bodies of the first SOI transistor and the second SOI transistor float together.

Abstract: A ROM device provides a double density memory array. The word line array is composed of transversely disposed conductors sandwiched between two arrays of bit lines which are orthogonally disposed relative to the word line array. The two arrays of bit lines are stacked with one above and with one below the word line array. A first gate oxide layer is located between the word line array and a first one of the array of bit lines and a second gate oxide layer is located between the word line array and a the other of the arrays of bit lines. The two parallel sets of polysilicon thin, film transistors are formed with the word lines serving as gates for the transistors.

Abstract: A dynamic random access memory device for storing 2-bit information, including a memory cell having two access transistors and one capacitor, wherein one of the access transistors is composed of a thin film transistor and disposed above the other access transistor which is formed in a substrate; and the capacitor is sandwiched by the two access transistors.

Abstract: Disclosed is a semiconductor memory device comprising an SOI substrate in which a semiconductor film is formed on a semiconductor substrate with an insulating film interposed therebetween. A memory cell structure is formed by a switching MOS transistor formed in the SOI substrate and an Esaki diode is positioned on the MOS transistor. The memory device also comprises a memory cell provided with a plurality of tunnel diodes connected to one of the impurity regions constituting the FET formed in the semiconductor substrate, and another memory cell provided with an Esaki diode formed in an self-alignment by a solid phase diffusion. In manufacturing the semiconductor memory device, the MOS transistor and the Esaki diode, which collectively form a memory cell, are integratedly formed one upon the other. The MOS transistor is formed in a semiconductor substrate using an SOI structure so as to prepare a memory cell which does not include a parasitic pn-junction.

Abstract: An electronic memory device is disclosed which utilizes silicon-on-sapphire SOS) transistors that exhibit binary states dependent upon the dose of ionizing radiation to which they are subjected. A memory utilizing such SOS transistors may have information written into it, permenently or for a short period of time, by electron-beam bombardment so that the memory operates as a PROM. The memory may also operate as a RAM when a scanning electron beam, in conjunction with appropriately applied biases, is used to read and write information at a high rate.

Abstract: A circuit reduces the row select voltage swing in a memory array, thereby reducing access time, power dissipation, disturb problems, glitches on the output, and alpha particle sensitivity. A row driver transistor is coupled between a first voltage source and the word line of a row of memory cells and has a base coupled to a row decode signal. A clamp circuit coupled to the base clamps a voltage on the base in accordance with a current provided by a current mirror coupled thereto. A write enable circuit is differentially connected to the current mirror and the clamp circuit for enabling the clamp circuit during a read mode for limiting the voltage swing on the word line.

Abstract: A semiconductor device according to the present invention including a first semiconductor region formed on an insulating substrate which is a bit line and, another or second semiconductor region formed on the substrate which is a power supply line. The semiconductor device also includes an opposite conductive type semiconductor region formed on the substrate which is between the two semiconductor regions, additionally includes a metal wiring layer which is a word line and which is situated on an insulating layer on the opposite conductive type semiconductor region. The first semiconductor region bit line is in parallel with the second semiconductor region powerline which is connected to an electric power supply. The metal wiring word line being perpendicular to the second semiconductor region power line which is connected to the electric power supply.

Abstract: A semiconductor device for comprising electrically alterable read-only memories formed in and on the same silicon substrate is disclosed. The read-only memories are driven by both a first voltage having one polarity and a second voltage having the opposite polarity. The first voltage is supplied from an external unipolar voltage source, but the second voltage is generated by a bipolar voltage generator which is located on the same silicon substrate and is driven by said external unipolar voltage source.

Abstract: A unidirectional conducting element is series connected between an input terminal and the source electrode of an insulated-gate field-effect transistor (IGFET) having an electrically floating substrate. The unidirectional conducting element is poled to conduct in a direction which is opposite to the forward direction of the source-to-substrate junction in order to isolate the substrate of the IGFET and its associated capacitance from a signal source connected to the input terminal. The invention is particularly useful in high density, high speed, random access memories (RAMs) to prevent the loading of bit lines by non-selected memory cells.

Abstract: In a semiconductor memory cell in which binary data is represented by the density of minority carriers stored in the inversion regions of two isolated MIS capacitors, a method of nondestructively recalling the datum stored therein is described. In this method, the minority carriers are extracted from either one or both of the inversion regions, and the resulting potential change across either one or both of the MIS capacitors is indicative of the datum stored in the memory cell. These memory cells can be used in random access memories with nondestructive recall and in content addressable memories.