A 1.0 V power supply, 9.3 GB/s write speed, Single-Cell Self-Boost program scheme for high performance ferroelectric NAND flash SSD

A Single-Cell Self-Boost (SCSB) program scheme is proposed to achieve a 1.0 V power supply operation in Ferroelectric (Fe-) NAND flash memories. The proposed SCSB scheme only self-boosts the channel voltage of the cell to which the program voltage V_PGM is applied in the program-inhibit NAND string. The program disturb is well suppressed at the 1.0 V power supply voltage in the proposed program scheme. The power consumption of the Fe-NAND at V_CC = 1.0 V decreases by 86% compared with the conventional floating gate (FG-) NAND at V_CC = 1.8 V without the degradation of the write speed. The number of NAND chips written simultaneously in Solid-State Drives (SSD) increases by 6.7 times and the 9.3 GB/s write throughput of the Fe-NAND SSD is achieved for an enterprise application.     

A dual-page programming scheme for high-speed multigigabit-scaleNAND flash memories

To realize a low-cost and high-speed programming NAND flash memory, a new programming scheme, a “dual-page programming scheme,” has been proposed. This architecture drastically increases the program throughput without circuit area overhead. In the proposed scheme, two memory cells are programmed at the same time using only one page buffer. Therefore, the page size, i.e., the number of memory cells programmed simultaneously, is doubled and the program speed is improved. As the number of page buffers required in the proposed scheme is the same as that in the conventional one, there is no circuit area increase. This novel operation is made possible by using a bitline as a dynamic latch to temporarily store the program data. As a result, the programming is accelerated by 73% in a 1-Gb generation and 62% in a 4-Gb generation, 18.2-MB/s 1-Gb or 30.7-MB/s 4-Gb NAND flash memory can be realized with this new architecture     

A Zeroing Cell-to-Cell Interference Page Architecture With Temporary LSB Storing and Parallel MSB Program Scheme for MLC NAND Flash Memories

A new MLC NAND page architecture is presented as a breakthrough solution for sub-40-nm MLC NAND flash memories and beyond. To reduce cell-to-cell interference which is well known as the most critical scaling barrier for NAND flash memories, a novel page architecture including temporary LSB storing program and parallel MSB program schemes is proposed. A BL voltage modulated ISPP scheme was used as parallel MSB programming in order to reduce cell-to-cell interference caused by the order in which the cells are programmed. By adopting the proposed page architecture, the number of neighbor cells that are programmed after programming a selected cell in BL direction as well as their amount of T/th shift during programming can be suppressed largely without increasing memory array size. Compared to conventional architecture it leads to a reduction of BL-BL cell-to-cell interference by almost 100%, and of WL-WL and diagonal cell-to-cell interferences by 50% at the 60 nm technology node. The proposed architecture enables also to improve average MLC program speed performance by 11% compared with conventional architecture, thanks to its fast LSB program performance.     

A double-level-Vth select gate array architecture formultilevel NAND flash memories

In multilevel flash memories, the threshold voltages of the memory cells should be controlled precisely. This paper describes how in a conventional NAND flash memory, the threshold voltages of the memory cells fluctuate due to array noise during the bit-by-bit program verify operation, and as a result, the threshold voltage distribution becomes wider. This paper describes a new array architecture, “A double-level-V_th select gate array architecture” to eliminate the array noise, together with a reduction of the cell area. The array noise is mainly caused by interbitline capacitive coupling noise and by the high resistance of the diffused source-line. The threshold voltage fluctuation can be as much as 0.7 V in a conventional array. In the proposed array, bitlines are alternately selected, and the unselected bitlines are used as low resistance source-lines. Moreover, the unselected bitlines form a shield between the neighboring selected bitlines. As a result, the array noise is strongly suppressed. The threshold voltage fluctuation is estimated to be as small as 0.03 V in the proposed array and a reliable operation of a multilevel NAND flash memory can be realized     

Low Voltage Flash Memory Cells Using SiGe Quantum Dots for Enhancing F-N Tunneling

提出了一种用于半导体闪速存储器单元的新的Si/SiGe量子点/隧穿氧化层/多晶硅栅多层结构,该结构可以实现增强F-N隧穿的编程和擦除机制.模拟结果表明该结构具有高速和高可靠性的优点.测试结果表明该结构的工作电压比传统NAND结构的存储器单元降低了4V.采用该结构能够实现高速、低功耗和高可靠性的半导体闪速存储器.     

Novel Co-Design of NAND Flash Memory and NAND Flash Controller Circuits for Sub-30 nm Low-Power High-Speed Solid-State Drives (SSD)

As the cell size of the NAND flash memory has been scaled down by 40%–50% per year and the memory capacity has been doubling every year, a solid-state drive (SSD) that uses NAND as mass storage for personal computers and enterprise servers is attracting much attention. To realize a low-power high-speed SSD, the co-design of NAND flash memory and NAND controller circuits is essential. In this paper, three new circuit technologies, the selective bit-line precharge scheme, the advanced source-line program, and the intelligent interleaving, are proposed. In the selective bit-line precharge scheme, an unnecessary bit-line precharge is removed during the verify-read and consequently the current consumption decreases by 23%. In the advanced source-line program scheme, a hierarchical source-line structure is adopted. The load capacitance during the program pulse is reduced by 90% without a die size overhead. As a result, the current consumption is reduced by 48%. Finally, with the intelligent interleaving, a current peak is suppressed and a high-speed parallel write operation of the NAND flash memories is achieved. By using these three technologies, both the NAND flash memory and the NAND controller circuits are best optimized. At the sub-30 nm generation, the current consumption of the NAND flash memory decreases by 60% and the SSD speed improves by 150% without a cost penalty or circuit noise.      

基于SiGe量子点实现增强F-N隧穿的低压闪速存储器

提出了一种用于半导体闪速存储器单元的新的Si/SiGe量子点/隧穿氧化层/多晶硅栅多层结构,该结构可以实现增强F-N隧穿的编程和擦除机制.模拟结果表明该结构具有高速和高可靠性的优点.测试结果表明该结构的工作电压比传统NAND结构的存储器单元降低了4V.采用该结构能够实现高速、低功耗和高可靠性的半导体闪速存储器.     

Novel self-limiting high-speed program scheme of p-channel DINORflash memory with n-channel select transistors

This paper describes a novel self-limiting high-speed program scheme of the p-channel DINOR (D_I_vided bit line N_O_R_) flash memory utilizing n-channel select transistors. This scheme makes it possible to maintain the high programming throughput of the p-channel DINOR even for future lower-voltage operation. Using this scheme, programming stops automatically at the desired threshold voltage state without any conventional verify operations. Moreover, the only structural change from the conventional p-channel DINOR is the change of the impurity type of the select transistors, and the only operational change is the addition of a very short negative voltage pulse of 0.1 μs to each programming gate pulse. This shortness of the additional pulse hardly degrades the programming speed at all. This novel scheme is expected to become a key technology for the realization of future, high-performance, lower-supply-voltage p-channel DINOR flash memories     

一种用于NAND闪存的奇偶位线块编程补偿算法

为改善数据保持干扰和编程干扰对NAND闪存可靠性的影响,提出了一种新的奇偶位线块编程补偿算法。该算法利用编程干扰效应来补偿由数据保持引起的阈值漂移,修复NAND闪存因数据保持产生的误码,提高了NAND闪存的可靠性。将该算法应用于编程擦除次数为3k次的1x-nm MLC NAND闪存。实验结果表明,在数据保持时间为1年的条件下,与传统奇偶交叉编程算法相比,采用该补偿算法的NAND闪存的误码降低了93%;与读串扰恢复算法相比,采用该补偿算法的NAND闪存的误码下降了38%。     

Circuit techniques for a 1.8-V-only NAND flash memory

Focusing on internal high-voltage (V_pp) switching and generation for low-voltage NAND flash memories, this paper describes a V _(pp) switch, row decoder, and charge-pump circuit. The proposed nMOS V_pp switch is composed of only intrinsic high-voltage transistors without channel implantation, which realizes both reduction of the minimum operating voltage and elimination of the V _pp leakage current. The proposed row decoder scheme is described in which all blocks are in selected state in standby so as to prevent standby current from flowing through the proposed V_pp switches in the row decoder. A merged charge-pump scheme generates a plurality of voltage levels with an individually optimized efficiency, which reduces circuit area in comparison with the conventional scheme that requires a separate charge-pump circuit for each voltage level. The proposed circuits were implemented on an experimental NAND flash memory. The charge pump and V_pp switch successfully operated at a supply voltage of 1.8 V with a standby current of 10 μA. The proposed pump scheme reduced the area required for charge-pump circuits by 40%     

A 117-mm2 3.3-V only 128-Mb multilevel NAND flash memoryfor mass storage applications

For a quantum step in further cost reduction, the multilevel cell concept has been combined with the NAND flash memory. Key requirements of mass storage, low cost, and high serial access throughput have been achieved by sacrificing fast random access performance. This paper describes a 128-Mb multilevel NAND flash memory storing 2 b per cell. Multilevel storage is achieved through tight cell threshold voltage distribution of 0.4 V and is made practical by significantly reducing program disturbance by using a local self-boosting scheme. An intelligent page buffer enables cell-by-cell and state-by-state program and inhibit operations. A read throughput of 14.0 MB/s and a program throughput of 0.5 MB/s are achieved. The device has been fabricated with 0.4-μm CMOS technology, resulting in a 117 mm² die size and a 1.1 μm² effective cell size     

A simple and efficient self-limiting erase scheme for highperformance split-gate flash memory cells

This paper presents a fast self-limiting erase scheme for split-gate flash EEPROMs. In this technique the conventional erasing is rapidly followed by an efficient soft programming to correct for over-erase within the given voltage pulsewidth. The typical erasing time is about 400 ms and the final erased threshold voltage is accurately controlled via the base level read mode voltage within 0.3 V. The proposed scheme can he used for high throughput erasing in low voltage, high density, multilevel operation split-gate flash memory cells     

A 35 ns cycle time 3.3 V only 32 Mb NAND flash EEPROM

A 32 Mb NAND type flash EEPROM has been developed with 0.425 μm CMOS technology. A 35 ns cycle time is achieved by adopting a pipeline scheme. A boosted word-line scheme and a program verify operation achieving tight threshold voltage (Vth) distribution of programmed cells reduce read-out access time. Multiple block erase operation is realized by adopting erase block registers. All functions are operable with a single 5.3 V or 5 V power supply     

Anticipatory I/O Management for Clustered Flash Translation Layer in NAND Flash Memory

Recently, NAND flash memory has emerged as a next generation storage device because it has several advantages, such as low power consumption, shock resistance, and so on. However, it is necessary to use a flash translation layer (FTL) to intermediate between NAND flash memory and conventional file systems because of the unique hardware characteristics of flash memory. This paper proposes a new clustered FTL (CFTL) that uses clustered hash tables and a two‐level software cache technique. The CFTL can anticipate consecutive addresses from the host because the clustered hash table uses the locality of reference in a large address space. It also adaptively switches logical addresses to physical addresses in the flash memory by using block mapping, page mapping, and a two‐level software cache technique. Furthermore, anticipatory I/O management using continuity counters and a prefetch scheme enables fast address translation. Experimental results show that the proposed address translation mechanism for CFTL provides better performance in address translation and memory space usage than the well‐known NAND FTL (NFTL) and adaptive FTL (AFTL).     

A 3.3 V 32 Mb NAND flash memory with incremental step pulseprogramming scheme

While the performance of flash memory exceeds hard disk drives in almost every category, the cost of flash memory must come down in order to gain wider acceptance in mass storage applications. This paper describes a 3.3 V-only 32 Mb NAND flash memory that achieves not only high performance but also low cost with a 94.9 mm² die size, improved yields, and a simple process with 0.5 μm CMOS technology. Die size is reduced by eliminating high voltage operation on the bitlines through a self boosted program inhibit voltage generation scheme. Incremental-step-pulse programming results in a 2.3 MB/s program data rate as well as improved process variation tolerance. Interleaved data paths and a boosted wordline results in a 25 ns burst cycle time and a 24 MB/s read data rate. Maximum operating current is less than 8 mA     

A 98 mm2 die size 3.3-V 64-Mb flash memory with FN-NORtype four-level cell

In order to realize high-capacity and low-cost flash memory, we have developed a 64-Mb flash memory with multilevel cell operation scheme. The 64-Mb flash memory has been achieved in a 98 mm² die size by using four-level per cell operation scheme, NOR type cell array, and 0.4-μm CMOS technology. Using an FN type program/erase cell allows a single 3.3 V supply voltage. In order to establish fast programming operation using Fowler-Nordheim (FN)-NOR type memory cell, we have developed a highly parallel multilevel programming technology. The drain voltage controlled multilevel programming (DCMP) scheme, the parallel multilevel verify (PMV) circuit, and the compact multilevel sense-amplifier (CMS) have been implemented to achieve 128 b parallel programming and 6.3 μs/Byte programming speed     

High-Voltage Analog System for a Mobile NAND Flash

High-voltage analog circuits, including a novel high-voltage regulation scheme, are presented with emphasis on low supply voltage, low power consumption, low area overhead, and low noise, which are key design metrics for implementing NAND Flash memory in a mobile handset. Regulated high voltage generation at low supply voltage is achieved with optimized oscillator, high-voltage charge pump, and voltage regulator circuits. We developed a design methodology for a high-voltage charge pump to minimize silicon area, noise, and power consumption of the circuit without degrading the high-voltage output drive capability. Novel circuit techniques are proposed for low supply voltage operation. Both the oscillator and the regulator circuits achieve 1.5 V operation, while the regulator includes a ripple suppression circuit that is simple and robust. Through the paper, theoretical analysis of the proposed circuits is provided along with Spice simulations. A mobile NAND Flash device is realized with an advanced 63 nm technology to verify the operation of the proposed circuits. Extensive measurements show agreement with the results predicted by both analysis and simulation.     

A 144-Mb, eight-level NAND flash memory with optimized pulsewidthprogramming

We report a fast-programming, compact sense and latch (SL) circuit to realize an eight-level NAND flash memory. Fast programming is achieved by supplying optimized voltage and pulsewidth to the bit lines, according to the programming data. As a result, all data programming is completed almost simultaneously, and 0.67-MB/s program throughput, which is 1.7 times faster than conventional program throughput, is achieved. The compact layout of the SL circuit is made possible by four 3-bit latches sharing one unit of the read/verify control circuit. Using these techniques, we fabricated a 144-Mb, eight-level NAND flash memory using a 0.35-μm CMOS process, resulting in a 104.2-mm² die size and a 1.05-μm² effective cell size     

Soft-Decision Error Correction of NAND Flash Memory with a Turbo Product Code

As NAND flash memory fabrication technology scales down to 20 nm and below, the raw bit error rate increases very rapidly and conventional hard-decision based error correction does not provide enough protection. The turbo product code (TPC) based error correction with multi-precision output from NAND flash memory is promising because of high error-correcting performance and flexibility in code construction. In this work, we construct a rate-0.907 (36116, 32768) extended TPC for 2-bit MLC NAND flash memory, and apply the Chase–Pyndiah decoding algorithm. An efficient complexity reduction scheme is also proposed to eliminate redundant computations in the Chase–Pyndiah decoding algorithm. The replica parallel decoding is also employed to lower the error floor. The experimental results that include the effects of flash memory output precision are presented for a simulated flash memory channel.     

Program Cache Busy Time Control Method for Reducing Peak Current Consumption of NAND Flash Memory in SSD Applications

In current NAND flash design, one of the most challenging issues is reducing peak current consumption (peak ICC), as it leads to peak power drop, which can cause malfunctions in NAND flash memory. This paper presents an efficient approach for reducing the peak ICC of the cache program in NAND flash memory — namely, a program Cache Busy Time (tPCBSY) control method. The proposed tPCBSY control method is based on the interesting observation that the array program current (ICC2) is mainly decided by the bit‐line bias condition. In the proposed approach, when peak ICC2 becomes larger than a threshold value, which is determined by a cache loop number, cache data cannot be loaded to the cache buffer (CB). On the other hand, when peak ICC2 is smaller than the threshold level, cache data can be loaded to the CB. As a result, the peak ICC of the cache program is reduced by 32% at the least significant bit page and by 15% at the most significant bit page. In addition, the program throughput reaches 20 MB/s in multiplane cache program operation, without restrictions caused by a drop in peak power due to cache program operations in a solid‐state drive.