U.S. patent application number 09/826764 was filed with the patent office on 2001-10-18 for digit line architecture for dynamic memory.
Invention is credited to Keeth, Brent.
Application Number | 20010030899 09/826764 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26681390 |
Filed Date | 2001-10-18 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010030899 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Keeth, Brent |
October 18, 2001 |
Digit line architecture for dynamic memory
Abstract
A novel bi-level DRAM architecture is described which achieves
significant reductions in die size while maintaining the noise
performance of traditional folded architectures. Die size reduction
results primarily by building the memory arrays with 6F.sup.2 or
smaller memory cells in a type of cross point memory cell layout.
The memory arrays utilize stacked digitlines and vertical digitline
twisting to achieve folded architecture operation and noise
performance.
Inventors: |
Keeth, Brent; (Boise,
ID) |
Correspondence
Address: |
TRASK BRITT
P.O. BOX 2550
SALT LAKE CITY
UT
84110
US
|
Family ID: |
26681390 |
Appl. No.: |
09/826764 |
Filed: |
April 5, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09826764 |
Apr 5, 2001 |
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09507170 |
Feb 18, 2000 |
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6243311 |
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09507170 |
Feb 18, 2000 |
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08701749 |
Aug 22, 1996 |
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6043562 |
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60010293 |
Feb 1, 1996 |
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60010622 |
Jan 26, 1996 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
365/206 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 27/10891 20130101;
G11C 7/18 20130101; G11C 11/4097 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
365/206 |
International
Class: |
G11C 007/02 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A differential electrical noise reduction method for an
integrated circuit device comprising: providing an integrated
circuit device having a plurality of at least four arrays of a
plurality of memory cells, each array of memory cells being
substantially equally spaced from an adjacent array of memory
cells, each array of memory cells including a plurality of memory
cells and at least four pairs of digitlines, each pair of
digitlines including a first digitline and a second digitline, the
first digitline and the second digitline being substantially
vertically aligned in an upper conductive level and a lower
conductive level of the integrated circuit device, the first
digitline and second digitline of each pair of digitlines each
connected to an equal number of the memory cells in each array of
the plurality of memory cells; and electrically balancing the first
digitline and the second digitline of each digitline pair of the at
least four pairs of digitlines to balance the electrical noise
therebetween by twisting the first digitline and the second
digitline of a pair of digitlines of the at least four pairs of
digitlines between arrays of the at least four arrays of memory
cells in a twist region located between each array of the plurality
of at least four arrays of memory cells, the first pair and the
third pair of digitlines of the at least four pairs of digitlines
twisted in the twist region located between the first array of
memory cells and the second array of memory cells and twisted in
the twist region located between the third array of memory cells
and the fourth array of memory cells while the second pair of
digitlines and the fourth pair of the at least four pairs of
digitlines are twisted in the twist region located between the
second array of memory cells and the third array of memory
cells.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of electrically balancing
comprises: coupling an equal number of memory cells to the portion
of one of the first digitline and the second digit line of a pair
of digitlines when located in a lower conductive level of an array
of the plurality of at least four arrays of memory cells.
3. The method of claim 2 further comprising: isolating adjacent
memory cells of an array of the plurality of at least four arrays
of memory cells using an isolation region comprising a plurality of
isolation transistors, each isolation transistor having a gate
biased to predetermined voltage.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No.
09/507,170, filed Feb. 18, 2000, pending, which is a divisional of
application Ser. No. 08/701,749, filed Aug. 22, 1996, now U.S. Pat.
No. 6,043,562, issued Mar. 28, 2000. This application claims
priority to provisional application Ser. No. 60/010,293 filed Feb.
1, 1996, and Ser. No. 60/010,622 filed Jan. 26, 1996, both entitled
A NOVEL ARCHITECTURE FOR ADVANCED HIGH DENSITY DYNAMIC RANDOM
ACCESS MEMORIES.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates generally to memory devices
and, in particular, the present invention relates to a digit line
architecture in a DRAM.
[0004] 2. State of the Art
[0005] A modem DRAM memory cell or memory bit, as shown in FIG. 1,
consists of one MOS transistor 10 and one storage capacitor
12--accordingly referred to as a one-transistor one-capacitor
(1T1C) cell. The memory bit transistor operates as a switch,
interposed between the memory bit capacitor and the digitline 14.
The memory bit is capable of holding a single piece of binary
information, as stored electric charge in the cell capacitor. Given
a bias voltage of Vcc/2 on the capacitor's common node, a logic one
level is represented by +Vcc/2 volts across the capacitor and a
logic zero is represented by -Vcc/2 volts across the capacitor. In
either case, the amount of charge stored in the memory bit
capacitor is Q=C.multidot.VCC/2 coulombs, where C is the
capacitance value in Farads.
[0006] The digitline, as depicted in FIG. 1, consists of a
conductive line connected to a multitude of memory bit transistors.
Generally, either metal or silicided/polycided polysilicon forms
the conductive line. Due to the large quantity of attached memory
bits, its physical length, and proximity to other features, the
digitline is very capacitive. For instance, a typical value for
digitline capacitance on a 0.35 .mu.m process might be around 300
fF. Digitline capacitance is an important parameter since it
dictates many other aspects of the design.
[0007] The memory bit transistor's gate terminal connects to a
wordline (towline) 16. The wordline, which connects to a multitude
of memory bits, consists of an extended segment of the same
polysilicon used to form the transistor's gate. The wordline is
physically orthogonal to the digitline. A memory array, shown in
FIG. 2, is created by tiling a selected quantity of memory bits
together such that memory bits along a given digitline do not share
a common wordline and such that memory bits along a common wordline
do not share a common digitline. FIG. 3 contains an example of a
memory array formed by tiling memory bits. There are several
features of this layout that need illumination. First, note that
the memory bits are in pairs to permit the sharing of a common
contact to the digitline. This feature reduces the array size by
eliminating unnecessary duplication. Second, note that any given
wordline only forms (crosses) a memory bit transistor on
alternating digitlines. This feature allows the formation of
digitline pairs and ensures that wordline activation enables
transistors only on alternate digitlines. Digitline pairs are an
inherent feature in folded digitline arrays, as depicted in FIG. 3.
An alternate array structure called open digitline architecture can
also be used. A thorough understanding of both folded and open
architectures by those skilled in the art assists in appreciating
the characteristics and benefits of the bi-level digitline of the
present invention. The open digitline and folded digitline
architectures both have distinct advantages and disadvantages.
While open digitline architectures achieve smaller array layouts by
virtue of using smaller 6F.sup.2 memory bit cells, they also suffer
from poor noise performance. A relaxed wordline pitch which stems
from the 6F.sup.2 memory bit simplifies the task of wordline driver
layout. Sense amplifier layout, though, is difficult because the
array configuration is inherently half pitch--one sense amplifier
for every two digitlines. Folded digitline architectures, on the
other hand, have superior signal to noise, at the expense of
larger, less efficient array layout. Good signal to noise
performance stems from the adjacency of true and complement
digitlines and the capability to twist these digitline pairs. For
example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,107,459 to Chu et al., issued Apr. 21,
1992 describes a stacked digitline architecture which uses lateral
and vertical twisting. This technique, however, allows differential
noise to be experienced on the digitlines which creates difficulty
for differential sense amplifiers. Sense amplifier layout in the
folded digitline architecture is simplified because the array
configuration is quarter pitch--one sense amplifier for every four
digitlines. Wordline driver layout is more difficult since the
wordline pitch is effectively reduced in folded architectures.
[0008] For the reasons stated above, and for other reasons stated
below which will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon
reading and understanding the present specification, there is a
need in the art for a new array architecture which combines the
advantages of both folded and open digitline architectures while
avoiding their respective disadvantages. To meet this objective,
the architecture needs to include the following features and
characteristics: an open digitline memory bit configuration, a
small 6F.sup.2 memory bit, and a small, efficient array layout. The
memory must also include a folded digitline sense amplifier
configuration, adjacent true and complement digitlines, and twisted
digitline pairs to achieve a high signal to noise ratio. Further, a
relaxed wordline pitch should be used to facilitate better
layout.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The above-mentioned problems with digit line architectures
and other problems are addressed by the present invention and which
will be understood by reading and studying the following
specification. A memory device is described which reduces overall
die size beyond that obtainable from either the folded or open
digitline architectures. A signal to noise performance is achieved
which approaches that of the folded digitline architecture.
[0010] In particular, the present invention describes a dynamic
memory device comprising a multi-level digit line pair fabricated
on a semiconductor die. The multi-level digit line pair has
vertically offset first and second digit lines. The digit line pair
is vertically twisted such that the first digit line is located
below the second digit line on one horizontal side of the vertical
twist and located above the second digit line as upper digit line
on an opposite horizontal side of the twist.
[0011] In another embodiment, an integrated circuit dynamic memory
device comprises an integrated circuit die having multiple,
vertically offset conductive levels, and a multi-level digit line
pair fabricated on the integrated circuit die having first and
second electrically isolated digit lines, each of the first and
second digit lines comprising first and second sections located in
different ones of the multiple conductive levels and electrically
connected via a vertically traversing electrical path. The first
and second digit lines are located such that the first section of
the first digit line is vertically located above the first section
of the second digit line and the second section of the first digit
line is vertically located below the second section of the second
digit line.
[0012] In yet another embodiment, a method is described for
reducing noise in an integrated circuit memory device. The method
comprises the step of electrically balancing first and second
vertically stacked digit lines. To balance the digit lines, the
first and second digit lines can be fabricated in first and second
conductive levels such that the first and second digit lines are
substantially vertically aligned. A vertical conductive twist can
be provided to locate a portion of each of the first and second
digit lines in both the first and second conductive levels.
Finally, an equal number of memory cells can be coupled to the
portion of the first and second digit line located in a lower
conductive level.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] FIG. 1 is a 1T1C DRAM memory cell;
[0014] FIG. 2 is a folded memory array schematic;
[0015] FIG. 3 is a folded memory array layout;
[0016] FIG. 4 depicts cell access waveforms;
[0017] FIG. 5 is a sense amplifier schematic;
[0018] FIG. 6 depicts sensing operation waveforms;
[0019] FIG. 7 is a sense amplifier schematic with I/O devices;
[0020] FIG. 8 depicts write operation waveforms;
[0021] FIG. 9 is a memory bit pair layout;
[0022] FIG. 10 is a layout to show array pitch;
[0023] FIG. 11 is a layout to show 8F2 derivation;
[0024] FIG. 12 is a folded digitline array schematic;
[0025] FIG. 13 depicts digitline twist schemes;
[0026] FIG. 14 is an open digitline array schematic;
[0027] FIG. 15 is an open digitline array layout;
[0028] FIG. 16 is a buried capacitor cell process cross
section;
[0029] FIG. 17 is a buried digitline memory bit cell layout;
[0030] FIG. 18 is a buried digitline memory bit process cross
section;
[0031] FIG. 19 is a trench capacitor memory bit process cross
section;
[0032] FIG. 20 is an equilibration and bias circuit schematic;
[0033] FIG. 21 is an equilibration and bias circuit layout;
[0034] FIG. 22 is a schematic showing I/O transistors;
[0035] FIG. 23 is a standard sense amplifier block;
[0036] FIG. 24 is a complex sense amplifier block;
[0037] FIG. 25 is a minimized sense amplifier block;
[0038] FIG. 26 is a single metal sense amplifier block;
[0039] FIG. 27 depicts waveforms for a read-modify-write DRAM
cycle;
[0040] FIG. 28 is a bootstrap wordline driver schematic;
[0041] FIG. 29 is a bootstrap wordline driver operation;
[0042] FIG. 30 is a NOR wordline driver;
[0043] FIG. 31 is a CMOS wordline driver;
[0044] FIG. 32 is a static decode tree;
[0045] FIG. 33 is a P&E decode tree;
[0046] FIG. 34 is a pass transistor decode tree schematic;
[0047] FIG. 35 is an open digitline architecture schematic;
[0048] FIG. 36 is an open digitline 32 Mbit array block;
[0049] FIG. 37 is a single pitch open digitline architecture;
[0050] FIG. 38 is an open digitline architecture with dummy
arrays;
[0051] FIG. 39 is a folded digitline array architecture
schematic;
[0052] FIG. 40 is a folded digitline architecture 32 Mbit array
block;
[0053] FIG. 41 is a development of bi-level digitline
architecture;
[0054] FIG. 42 is a digitline vertical twisting concept;
[0055] FIG. 43 is a bi-level digitline architecture schematic;
[0056] FIG. 44A depicts a first vertical twisting scheme;
[0057] FIG. 44B depicts a second vertical twisting scheme;
[0058] FIG. 44C depicts a third vertical twisting scheme;
[0059] FIG. 45 is a plaid 6F.sup.2 memory bit array;
[0060] FIG. 46 is a bi-level digitline array schematic; and
[0061] FIG. 47 is a bi-level digitline architecture 32 Mbit array
block.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0062] In the following detailed description of the preferred
embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which
form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration
specific preferred embodiments in which the invention may be
practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to
enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it
is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that
logical, mechanical and electrical changes may be made without
departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The
following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a
limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined
only by the appended claims.
[0063] An understanding of basic DRAM operation, such as reading
and writing, is necessary to fully appreciate the present
invention. A detailed description of DRAM circuitry is presented
below.
[0064] Referring to FIG. 2, assume that the capacitor has a logic
one level (+Vcc/2) stored on it. Conceptually form a digitline pair
or column with two adjacent digitlines. The digitlines, labeled D0
and D0* are initially equilibrated at Vcc/2 volts. All wordlines
are initially at zero volts, which turns off the memory bit
transistors. To read memory bit1, wordline WL0 transitions to a
voltage that is at least one transistor V.sub.th above Vcc. This
elevated wordline voltage level is referred to as Vccp or Vpp. When
the wordline voltage exceeds one V.sub.th, above the digitline
voltage (Vcc/2 in this example) and the memory bit transistor turns
on, the memory bit capacitor will begin to discharge onto the
digitline. Essentially, reading or accessing a DRAM cell results in
charge sharing between the memory bit capacitor and the digitline
capacitance. This sharing of charge causes the digitline voltage to
either increase for a stored logic one or decrease for a stored
logic zero. Ideally, the access will only modify the active
digitline, leaving its complement digitline unaltered. In reality,
the other digitline voltage will also change slightly, due to
parasitic coupling between digitlines and overlap capacitance
between the firing wordline and the digitline. Regardless, a
differential voltage develops between the two digitlines. The
magnitude of this signal voltage is a function of the memory bit
capacitance.COPYRGT. memory bit), digitline capacitance (Cdigit),
the memory bit's stored voltage prior to the access (Vcell), and
any noise terms. Accordingly, V.sub.signal=[(Vcell.multidot.-
Cmbit).div.(Cdgit+Cmbit)]-V.sub.noise volts. For a design in which
Vcell=1.65V, Cmemory bit--40 fF, Cdigit=300 fF, and V.sub.noise=0,
this equation yields a V.sub.signal of 194 mV. FIG. 4 contains
typical waveforms for the cell access operation just described.
[0065] After the cell access is complete, the sensing operation can
commence. The reason for forming a digitline pair will now become
apparent. FIG. 5 contains a schematic diagram for a simplified
sense amplifier circuit. Note that it consists of a cross-coupled
PMOS pair 18 and a cross-coupled NMOS pair 20. The NMOS pair or
N-sense-amp common node is labeled NLAT* (for N-sense-amp LATch) in
FIG. 5. Similarly, the P-sense-amp common node is labeled ACT (for
ACTive pull-up). Initially, NLAT* is biased to Vcc/2 and ACT is
biased to VSS or ground. Since the digitline pair D0 and D0* are
both initially at Vcc/2 volts, the N-sense-amp transistors remain
off due to zero Vgs potential. Similarly, both P-sense-amp
transistors remain off due to their negative Vgs potential. As
discussed in the preceding paragraph, a signal voltage develops
between the digitline pair when the memory bit access occurs. While
one digitline contains charge from the cell access, the other
digitline serves as a reference for the sensing operation. The
sense amplifier firing generally occurs sequentially rather than
concurrently. The N-sense-amp fires first and the P-sense-amp
second. The N-sense-amp is generally a better amplifier than the
P-sense-amp because of the higher drive of NMOS transistors and
better V.sub.th matching. This provides for better sensing
characteristics and lower probability of errors. FIG. 6 contains
waveforms for the sensing operation. Dropping the NLAT* signal
toward ground will fire the N-sense-amp. As the voltage between
NLAT* and the digitlines approaches V.sub.th, the NMOS transistor,
whose gate connection is to the higher voltage digitline, will
begin to conduct. Transistor conduction occurs first in the
subthreshold region, progressing to the saturation region as the
gate to source voltage exceeds V.sub.th. Conduction results in the
discharge of the low voltage digitline toward the NLAT* voltage.
Ultimately, NLAT* will reach ground, bringing the digitline with
it. Note that the other NMOS transistor will not conduct since its
gate voltage derives from the low voltage digitline, which is
discharging toward ground. In reality, parasitic coupling between
the digitlines and limited subthreshold conduction by the second
transistor will reduce the high digitline voltage.
[0066] Shortly after the N-sense-amp fires, ACT will drive toward
Vcc. This activates the P-sense-amp that operates in a
complementary fashion to the N-sense-amp. With the low voltage
digitline approaching ground, a strong signal exists to drive the
appropriate PMOS transistor into conduction. This conduction, again
moving from subthreshold to saturation operation, will charge the
high voltage digitline toward ACT, ultimately reaching Vcc. Since
the memory bit transistor remains on during sensing, the memory bit
capacitor will charge to the NLAT* or ACT voltage level. The
voltage, and hence charge, which the memory bit capacitor held
prior to accessing will restore a full level--Vcc for a logic one
and GND for a logic zero. It should be apparent now why the minimum
wordline voltage is V.sub.th above Vcc. If Vccp were anything less,
the memory bit transistor would turn off before the memory bit
capacitor attains a full Vcc level.
[0067] A DRAM write operation is very similar to sensing and
restore operations except that separate write driver circuits
determine whether logic ones or zeros are placed into the cells.
The write driver circuit is generally a tri-state inverter 19
connected to the digitlines through a second pair of pass
transistors 17 as shown in FIG. 7. These pass transistors are
referred to as I/O transistors. The gate terminals of the I/O
transistors connect to a common CSEL (Column SELect) signal. The
column address determines which CSEL signal activates and
ultimately which pair (or multiple pairs) of digitlines route to
the output pad or write driver. In most current DRAM designs, the
write driver simply overdrives the sense amplifier pair, which
remains active during the writing operation. The write operation
needs to be long enough in duration to flip the sense amplifiers.
After new data writes into the sense amplifiers, the amplifiers
actually finish the write cycle by restoring the digitlines to full
rail to rail voltages. FIG. 8 contains an example of this, in which
D0 is initially high after the sensing operation, and low after the
write operation. Each read cycle refreshes all of the memory bit
capacitors connected to the active wordline. A write operation,
though, involves only two to four memory bits within an array of
memory bits. This is because a single CSEL line generally connects
to only four I/O transistor pairs. The remaining digitlines are
accessible through additional CSEL lines corresponding to different
column address locations.
Memory Cells and Arrays
[0068] The primary advantage of DRAM, over other types of memory
technology, is low cost. This advantage arises from the simplicity
and scaling characteristics of its 1T1C memory cell. Although the
DRAM memory bit encompasses simple concepts, its actual design and
implementation are highly complex. Successful, costs-effective DRAM
designs require a tremendous amount of process technology.
[0069] A modem buried capacitor DRAM memory bit pair appears in
FIG. 9. DRAM memory bits are constructed in pairs, to allow sharing
of the digitline contact 22. Sharing a contact significantly
reduces overall cell size. The memory bits consist of an active
area rectangle 24 (in this case N+ active area), a pair of
polysilicon wordlines 16, a single digitline contact 22, a metal or
polysilicon digitline 14, and a pair of cell capacitors 12 formed
with oxide-nitride-oxide dielectric between two layers of
polysilicon. For some processes, the wordline polysilicon is
silicided to reduce the sheet resistance, permitting longer
wordline segments without reducing speed. The memory bit layout,
shown in FIG. 9, is essentially under the control of process
engineers, since every aspect of the memory bit must meet stringent
performance criteria.
[0070] A small array of memory bits appears in FIG. 10. This figure
is useful to illustrate several features of the memory bit. First,
note that the digitline pitch (width plus space) dictates the
active area pitch and capacitor pitch. Process engineers adjust the
active area width and the field oxide width to maximize transistor
drive and minimize transistor to transistor leakage. The field
oxide technology greatly impacts this balance. A thicker field
oxide or a shallower junction depth will enable wider transistor
active area. Second, the wordline pitch (width plus space) dictates
the space available for the digitline contact, transistor length,
active area space, field poly width, and capacitor length.
Optimization of each of these features by process engineers is
necessary to maximize capacitance, minimize leakage and maximize
yield. Contact technology, subthreshold transistor characteristics,
photolithography, etch and film technology will dictate the overall
design.
[0071] The memory bit shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 is by definition an
eight square feature (8F.sup.2) cell. The intended definition of
feature is minimum realizable process dimension, but in actual fact
equates to a dimension that is half of the wordline (row) or
digitline (column) pitch. A 0.25 .mu.m process having wordline and
digitline pitches of 0.6 .mu.m yields a memory bit size that is
8.multidot.(0.3 .mu.m).sup.2=0.72 .mu.m.sup.2. Explanation of the
8F.sub.2 designation is easier with the aid of FIG. 11. An
imaginary box drawn around the memory bit defines the cell's outer
boundary. Along the x- axis, this box will include 1/2 digitline
contact feature, 1 wordline feature, 1 capacitor feature, 1 field
poly feature, and 1/2 poly space feature, which totals to 4
features. Along the y-axis, this box contains two 1/2 field oxide
features and 1 active area feature, which totals to 2 features. The
area of the memory bit is, as defined herein,
4F.multidot.2F=8F.sup.2. The folded array architecture, as shown in
FIG. 10, always produces an 8F.sup.2 memory bit. This results from
the fact that each wordline connects (forms a crosspoint) with a
memory bit transistor on every other digitline and must pass around
memory bit transistors as field poly on the remaining digitlines.
The field poly in each memory bit cell adds two square features to
what would have been a 6F.sup.2 cell otherwise. Although the folded
array yields a cell that is 25% larger than other array
architectures, it also produces superior signal-to-noise
performance, especially when combined with some form of digitline
twisting. Superior low noise performance made folded array
architecture the architecture of choice since the 64 kbit
generation. It will be appreciated that additional techniques can
be used to measure memory cell sizes which may produce different
results from the technique described and used to determine cell
size herein. One technique which may produce a different cell size
measurement is to square the smaller of either the row or column
pitch. It is intended for the purpose of the present invention that
memory cell size be determined using the above detailed
definition.
[0072] A folded array is schematically depicted in FIG. 12. Sense
amplifier circuits placed at the edge of each array connect to both
true and complement digitlines (D and D*) coming from a single
array. Optional digitline pair twisting at one or more places can
reduce and balance the coupling to adjacent digitline pairs and
improve overall signal-to-noise characteristics. FIG. 13 serves as
evidence of the variety of twisting schemes used throughout the
DRAM industry. Ideally, a twist scheme will equalize the coupling
terms from each digitline to all other digitlines, both true and
complement. If done properly, the noise terms will cancel or only
produce common mode noise to which the differential sense amplifier
is immune. Each digitline twist region consumes valuable silicon
area. As a result, design engineers resort to the simplest and most
efficient twisting scheme to get the job done. Since the coupling
between adjacent metal lines is inversely proportional to their
spacing, the signal-to-noise problem gets increasingly worse as
DRAMs scale to smaller and smaller dimensions. Evidence of this
problem is the industry trend to use more complex twisting schemes
on succeeding generations.
[0073] An alternative to the folded array architecture, popular
prior to the 64 kbit generation, was the open digitline
architecture. Seen schematically in FIG. 14, this architecture also
features the sense amplifier circuits between two sets of arrays.
Unlike the folded array, though, true and complement digitlines (D
and D*) connected to each sense amplifier pair come from separate
arrays. This precludes the use of digitline twisting to improve
signal-to-noise performance and identifies the prevalent reason why
the industry switched to the folded array architecture. Also note
that, unlike the folded array architecture, each wordline in an
open digitline architecture connects to memory bit transistors on
every digitline--crosspoint style arrays. This feature permits a
25% reduction in memory bit size to only 6F.sup.2 since the
wordlines do not have to pass alternate memory bits as field poly.
The layout for an array of standard 6F.sup.2 memory bit pairs is
shown in FIG. 15. A box is drawn around one of the memory bits to
show the 6F.sup.2 cell boundary. Again, two memory bits share a
common digitline contact to improve layout efficiency.
Unfortunately, most manufacturers have found that the
signal-to-noise problems of open digitline architecture outweigh
the benefits derived from reduced array size.
[0074] Digitline capacitive components, contributed by each memory
bit, include junction capacitance, digitline to cellplate (poly3),
digitline to wordline, digitline to digitline, digitline to
substrate, and in some cases digitline to storage cell (poly2)
capacitance. Each memory bit connected to the digitline therefore
adds a specific amount of capacitance to the digitline. Most modern
DRAM designs have no more than 256 memory bits connected to a
digitline segment. Two factors dictate this quantity. First for a
given cell size, as determined by row and column pitches, there is
a maximum achievable storage capacitance without resorting to
exotic processes or excessive cell height. For processes in which
the digitline is above the storage capacitor (buried capacitor),
contact technology will determine the maximum allowable cell
height. This fixes the volume available (cell area multiplied by
cell height) in which to build the storage capacitor. Second, as
the digitline capacitance increases, the power associated with
charging and discharging this capacitance during reading and
writing operations increases. Any given wordline essentially
accesses (crosses) all of the columns within a DRAM. For a 256 Meg
DRAM, each wordline crosses 16,384 columns. With a multiplier such
as that, it is easy to appreciate why limits to digitline
capacitance are necessary to keep power dissipation low.
[0075] FIG. 16 contains a process cross section for the buried
capacitor memory bit depicted in FIG. 9. This type of memory bit,
employing a buried capacitor structure, places the digitline
physically above the storage capacitor. The digitline is
constructed from either metal or polycide while the digitline
contact is formed using metal or polysilicon plug technology. The
memory bit capacitor is formed with polysilicon (poly2) as the
bottom plate, an oxide-nitride-oxide (ONO) dielectric, and a sheet
of polysilicon (poly3) which forms the common node shared by all
memory bit capacitors. The capacitor shape can be simple, such as a
rectangle, or complex, such as concentric cylinders or stacked
discs. Exotic capacitor structures are the topic of many DRAM
process papers. The ONO dielectric undergoes optimization to
achieve maximum capacitance with minimum leakage. It must also
tolerate the maximum DRAM operating voltage without breakdown. For
this reason, the cellplate (poly3) is normally biased at +Vcc/2
volts. This will ensure that the dielectric will have no more than
Vcc/2 volts across it for either stored logic state, a logic one at
+Vcc/2 volts or a logic zero at -Vcc/2 volts.
[0076] There are two other basic memory bit configurations used in
the DRAM industry. The first, shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, is referred
to as a buried digitline or capacitor over bitline cell. The
digitline in this cell is almost always made from polysilicon
rather than metal. As viewed from the top, the active area 26 is
normally bent or angled to accommodate the storage capacitor
contact that must drop between digitlines. An advantage that the
buried digitline cell has over the buried capacitor cell of FIG. 16
is that the digitline is physically very close to the silicon
surface, making digitline contacts much easier to produce. The
angled active area, though, reduces the effective active area
pitch, constraining the isolation process even further. Buried
digitline cells also make formation of the capacitor contact
extremely difficult. Since the digitline is at or near minimum
pitch for the process, insertion of a contact between digitlines is
far from trivial.
[0077] FIG. 19 contains a process cross-section of the third type
of memory bit used in the construction of DRAMs. This cell utilizes
trench storage capacitors 28 and is accordingly called a trench
cell. Trench capacitors are formed in the silicon substrate, rather
than above the substrate, after etching deep holes into the wafer.
The storage node consists of a doped polysilicon plug 30 deposited
in the hole following growth or deposition of the capacitor
dielectric 32. Contact between the storage node plug and the
transistor drain is usually made through a poly strap 34. With most
trench capacitor designs, the substrate serves as the common node
connection to the capacitors, preventing the use of +Vcc/2 bias and
thinner dielectric. The substrate is heavily doped around the
capacitor to reduce the resistance and improve the capacitor's CV
characteristics. A real advantage to the trench cell is that the
capacitance can be increased by merely etching a deeper hole into
the substrate. Furthermore, the capacitor does not add stack height
to the design, which greatly simplifies contact technology. The
disadvantage to trench capacitor technology resides in the
difficulty with reliably building capacitors in deep silicon holes
and in connecting the trench capacitor to the transistor drain
terminal.
Sense Amplifier Elements
[0078] The term "sense amplifier" refers to a collection of circuit
elements that pitch up to the digitlines of a DRAM array. This
collection most generally includes isolation transistors, devices
for digitline equilibration and bias, one or more N-sense
amplifiers, one or more P-sense amplifiers, and devices to connect
selected digitlines to I/O signal lines. All of these circuits
along with the wordline driver circuits, to be discussed later, are
called pitch cells. This designation comes from the requirement
that the physical layout for these circuits is constrained by the
digitline and wordline pitches of an array of memory bits. For
example, the sense amplifier layout for a specific digitline pair
(column) generally consumes the space of four digitlines. This is
commonly referred to as quarter-pitch or four-pitch, such that one
sense amplifier exists for every four digitlines.
[0079] The first elements for review are the equilibration and bias
circuits. From the earlier discussions on DRAM operation, the
digitlines start at Vcc/2 volts prior to cell access and sensing.
In this paired digitline configuration, it is important to the
sensing operation that both digitlines, which form a column pair,
are at the same voltage before firing a wordline. Any offset
voltage that appears between the pair will directly reduce the
effective signal voltage produced by the access operation.
Digitline equilibration is accomplished with one or more NMOS
transistors connected between the digitlines. The higher drive
strength of an NMOS device produces faster equilibration than a
PMOS transistor of comparable size. An equilibration transistor,
together with bias transistors, appears schematically in FIG. 20.
The gate terminal is connected to a signal called EQ (EQuilibrate).
EQ is held at Vcc whenever the external row address strobe (RAS*)
is high, indicating an inactive or precharge state for the DRAM.
When RAS* falls, EQ will transition low, turning off the
equilibration transistor just prior to any wordline firing. Toward
the end of each RAS cycle, EQ will again transition high and force
the digitlines to re-equilibrate.
[0080] As shown in FIG. 20, Vcc/2 bias for the digitlines is
provided by two additional NMOS transistors. The devices operate in
conjunction with equilibration to ensure that the digitline pair
remains at the prescribed voltage for sensing. Normally, a pair of
digitlines that is at Vcc and ground, respectively, will
equilibrate to Vcc/2 volts. The bias devices ensure that this
occurs, and also guarantee that the digitlines remain at Vcc/2
despite leakage paths that might otherwise discharge them. NMOS
transistors are again used because of their superior drive
strength, but also to allow integration with the equilibration
transistor. Most often, layout integrates the bias and
equilibration transistors to reduce their effective size and since
they share the same EQ control signal. Most modern DRAMs use Vcc/2
volt precharge since this reduces power consumption, improves
sensing and reduces read time. An exception to Vcc/2 precharge
exists in the IBM.RTM. 16 Mbit PMOS memory bit DRAM designs that
equilibrate and bias the digitlines to Vcc. Since the wordlines and
digitlines are both at Vcc when the part is inactive, row to column
shorts do not contribute to increased standby current. On the other
hand, row to column shorts cause higher standby current in Vcc/2
precharge DRAMs since their wordlines are kept at ground in
standby. A typical layout for the equilibration and bias circuit
appears in FIG. 21.
[0081] Isolation devices are important elements in sense amplifier
circuits. Generally implemented as NMOS transistors, isolation
transistors are placed between the array digitlines and specific
sense amplifier components. As will be understood shortly, there
are a multitude of possible configurations for the sense amplifier
block. Isolation devices provide two functions. First, if the sense
amps are positioned between and connected to two arrays, they allow
one of the two arrays to be electrically isolated. This isolation
is necessary whenever a wordline fires high in one of the arrays.
Isolation of the second array will reduce the total digitline
capacitance connected to the sense amplifiers. This speeds read and
write time, reduces power consumption, and extends refresh for the
isolated array. Second, the isolation devices provide some
resistance between the sense amplifier and the array digitlines.
This resistance stabilizes the sense amplifiers and speeds up the
sensing operation by somewhat separating the high capacitance
digitlines from the low capacitance sense nodes. Capacitance of the
sense nodes, between isolation transistors, is generally less than
15 fF, permitting the sense amplifier to latch somewhat faster than
if solidly connected to the digitlines. The restore operation
slows, though, because of the isolation resistance, but this is
less important than sensing and stability. Isolation transistors
are physically located on both ends of the sense amplifier layout.
For quarter pitch sense amplifiers, there is one isolation
transistor for every two digitlines. Although this is twice the
active area width and space of an array, it nevertheless
establishes the minimum isolation used in the pitch cells.
[0082] Input/output (I/O) transistors allow data to be read from or
written to specific digitline pairs. A single I/O transistor
connects to each sense node as shown in FIG. 22. The outputs of
each I/O transistor are connect to I/O signal pairs. Commonly,
there are two pairs of I/O signal lines permitting four I/O
transistors to share a single column select control signal. DRAM
designs employing two or more metal layers run the column select
lines across the arrays using either metal2 or metal3. Each column
select activates four I/O transistors on both sides of an array,
permitting the connection of four digitline pairs (columns) to
peripheral data path circuits. The I/O transistors are carefully
sized to ensure that the I/O bias voltage or remnant voltage on the
I/O lines does not introduce instability into the sense amplifiers.
Although designs vary significantly as to the numerical ratio, I/O
transistors are two to eight times smaller than the N-sense
amplifier transistors. This relationship is referred to as beta
ratio. A beta ratio between five and eight is common, although
proper selection can only be verified with silicon, since
simulations fail to adequately predict sense amplifier
instability.
[0083] The fundamental elements of any sense amplifier block are
the N-sense amplifier and the P-sense amplifier. These amplifiers,
as previously discussed, work together to detect the access signal
voltage and drive the digitlines, accordingly to Vcc and ground.
The N-sense amplifier, depicted in FIG. 5, consists of
cross-coupled NMOS transistors. The N-sense amplifier drives the
low potential digitline to ground. Similarly, the P-sense amplifier
consists of cross-coupled PMOS transistors and drives the high
potential digitline to Vcc. The sense amplifiers are carefully
designed to guarantee correct detection and amplification of the
small signal voltage produced during cell access (less than 200
mV). Matching of transistor V.sub.th, transconductance, and
junction capacitance within close tolerances helps ensure reliable
sense amplifier operation. Ultimately, the layout dictates the
overall balance and performance of the sense amplifier block. As a
result, a tremendous amount of time is spent ensuring that the
sense amplifier layout is optimum. Symmetry and exact duplication
of elements are critical to a successful design including balanced
coupling to all sources of noise, such as I/O lines and latch
signals (NLAT* and ACT). Balance is especially critical for layout
residing inside the isolation transistors, since the sense node
capacitance is very low, making it more sensitive to noise and
circuit imbalances.
[0084] While the majority of DRAM designs latch the digitlines to
Vcc and ground, a growing number of designs are beginning to reduce
these levels. Various technical papers report improved refresh
times and lower power dissipation through reductions in latch
voltages. At first, this appears contradictory, since writing a
smaller charge into the memory cell should produce lower refresh
time. The benefits are derived from maintaining lower drain to
source voltages (Vds) and negative gate to source voltages (Vgs)
across non-accessed memory bit transistors. Lower Vds and negative
Vgs translate to substantially lower subthreshold leakage and
longer refresh, despite the smaller stored charge. Most designs
that implement reduced latch voltages generally raise the N-sense
amplifier latch voltage without lowering the P-sense amplifier
latch voltage. Designated as boosted sense ground designs, they
write data into each memory bit using full Vcc for a logic one and
boosted ground for a logic zero. The sense ground level is
generally a few hundred millivolts above true ground. In standard
DRAMs which drive digitlines fully to ground, the Vgs of
non-accessed memory bits becomes zero when the digitlines are
latched. This results in high subthreshold leakage for a stored one
level, since full Vcc exists across the memory bit transistor while
the Vgs is held to zero. Stored zero levels do not suffer from
prolonged subthreshold leakage since any amount of cell leakage
produces a negative Vgs for the transistor. The net effect is that
a stored one level leaks away much faster than a stored zero level.
One's level retention, therefore, establishes the maximum refresh
period for most DRAM designs. Boosted sense ground extends refresh
by reducing subthreshold leakage for stored ones. This is
accomplished by guaranteeing negative gate to source bias on
non-accessed memory bit transistors. The benefit of extended
refresh from these designs is somewhat diminished, though, by the
added complexity of generating boosted ground levels and the
problem of digitlines that no longer equilibrate at Vcc/2
volts.
[0085] The rate at which the sense amplifiers are activated has
been the subject of some debate. A variety of designs utilizes
multistage circuits to control the rate at which NLAT* fires.
Especially prevalent with boosted sense ground designs are two
stage circuits that initially drive NLAT* quickly toward true
ground, to speed sensing, and then bring NLAT* to the boosted
ground level to reduce cell leakage. An alternative to this
approach, using two stage drivers, first drives NLAT* slowly toward
ground to limit current and digitline disturbances. Following this
phase is a second phase in which NLAT* drives strongly toward
ground to complete the sensing operation. The second phase usually
occurs in conjunction with ACT activation. Although these two
designs have contrary operation, they each meet specific
performance objectives--trading off noise and speed.
[0086] FIG. 23 shows a sense amplifier block commonly utilized in
double or triple metal designs. It features two P-sense amplifiers
18 placed outside the isolation transistors 38, a pair of EQ/Bias
devices 36, a single N-sense amplifier 20, and a single I/O
transistor 17 for each digitline. This design is quarter pitch, as
are FIGS. 23 and 24, since only half of the sense amplifiers
required for an array are on either side. Placement of the P-sense
amplifiers outside the isolation devices is necessary since a full
one level (Vcc) cannot pass through NMOS ISO transistors whose gate
terminals are driven to Vcc. EQ/Bias transistors 36 are also placed
outside the ISO devices to permit continued equilibration of
digitlines in the isolated arrays. The I/O transistor gate
terminals for four adjacent digitlines connect to a common CSEL
signal. Each of the four I/O transistors are tied to a separate I/O
bus. This sense amplifier, although simple to implement, is
somewhat larger than other designs due to the presence of two
P-sense amplifiers.
[0087] FIG. 24 shows a second, more complicated style of sense
amplifier block. This design employs a single P-sense amplifier 18
and three sets of N-sense amplifiers 20. In this design, P-sense
amplifier is between the isolation transistors. Writing a full one
level to the memory bits requires that the isolation devices be
either NMOS depletion, PMOS enhancement, or NMOS enhancement mode
with boosted gate drive. The use of three N-sense amplifiers
suggests the use of PMOS isolation transistors, which prevent the
writing of full zero levels unless the N-sense amplifiers exist
outside the isolation devices. In this design, the use of three
N-sense amplifiers guarantees faster sensing and higher stability
than a similar design using only two N-sense amplifiers. The inside
N-sense amplifier fires prior to the outside N-sense amplifiers to
ensure proper sensing. This design using three N-sense amplifiers
will not yield a minimum layout, but this objective is sacrificed
for higher performance.
[0088] The sense amplifier block shown in FIG. 25 is at or near the
minimum configuration. This design features single N-sense 20 and
P-sense 18 amplifiers placed between the isolation transistors. To
write full logic levels requires that the isolation transistors be
either depletion mode devices or that the gate voltages be boosted
above Vcc by at least one Vth. This design still includes a pair of
EQ/Bias circuits to maintain equilibration on isolated arrays. Only
a few designs have ever tried to operate with a single EQ/Bias
circuit residing within the isolation devices. Most designers
consider floating digitlines a risky proposition since cell leakage
increases and sensing operations degrade as the digitlines drift
away from the Vcc/2 precharge level. Future DRAM designs
implemented on SOI (Silicon On Insulator) could permit the use of
single EQ/Bias circuits, though, since this technology has
negligible junction leakage.
[0089] A sense amplifier design for use on a single metal DRAM
appears in FIG. 26. Prevalent on 1 Mb and 4 Mb designs, single
metal processes conceded to multi-metal processes at the 16 Mb
generation. Unlike the double metal sense amplifiers shown in FIGS.
24 through 26, single metal sense amps lay out at half pitch--one
amplifier for every two array digitlines. This type of layout is
extremely difficult, placing tight constraints on process design
margins. Because of the unavailability of metal2, column select
signals cannot route across the memory arrays. As a result, column
select signal generation requires a localized rather than a global
column decoding circuit. FIG. 26 depicts how the N-sense amplifier
20 and P-sense amplifier 18 are located on opposite ends of the
memory bit arrays in single metal designs. The sharing of sense
amplifiers by two adjacent arrays is especially beneficial for
single metal designs. FIG. 26 illustrates this concept by showing
how two arrays and their associated P-sense amplifiers share a
single N-sense amplifier. In the depicted case, where I/O devices
exist on only one end, the rightmost P-sense amplifier activates
only when the right array is being accessed. The left P-sense
amplifier, though, always activates, regardless of which array is
being accessed, since all read and write operations must pass
through the left P-sense amplifier to reach the I/O devices.
[0090] A set of operating signal waveforms appears in FIG. 27 for
the sense amplifier shown in FIG. 23. The waveforms depict a read
modify write cycle (late write) in which a read operation precedes
a write operation during a single cell access. In this example, a
one level is read from the cell, indicated by D0* rising above D0
during the cell access. A one level always appears as +Vcc/2 in the
memory bit cell, regardless of whether the cell connects to a true
or complement digitline. The actual data state as viewed from the
DRAM's data terminal (DQ) is a function of the data topology and
the presence of data scrambling. Data scrambling or topo scrambling
is implemented through additional datapath circuits to ensure that
the stored memory bit data level and DQ logic level are in
agreement. A memory bit one level (+Vcc/2) corresponds to a logic
one at the DQ and a memory bit zero level (-Vcc/2) corresponds to a
logic zero at the DQ terminal. The late write timing sequence shown
in FIG. 27 depicts a wordline firing in array1. Prior to the
wordline firing, ISOA* must transition low to isolate array0 from
the sense amplifiers. EQB also goes low and disables the EQ/Bias
transistors connected to array1. The wordline fires high, accessing
a memory bit, which dumps its charge onto D0*. NLAT*, initially at
Vcc/2, drives low to begin the sensing operation by firing the
N-sense amplifier to pull D0 toward ground. ACT fires, moving from
ground to Vcc, which activates the P-sense amplifier, driving D0*
toward Vcc. CSEL0 rises to Vcc, which enables the I/O transistors
and connects the peripheral data circuits to the memory cells. The
I/O lines are biased at a voltage close to Vcc. The I/O line bias
causes D0 to rise slightly while the column is active. Following
this read operation, write drivers in the periphery activate and
drive the I/O lines to opposite data states (in this example). This
new data propagates through the I/O devices and writes over the
previous data held by the sense amplifiers. After the sense
amplifiers latch the new data, the write drivers and the I/O
devices shut down, allowing the sense amplifiers to restore the
digitlines to full levels. The wordline transitions low to shut off
the memory bit transistor after the cell restoration completes.
Finally, EQB and ISOA* fire high to equilibrate the digitlines back
to Vcc/2 and to reconnect array0 to the sense amplifiers. While
timing for each of these events needs to be minimized for optimum
DRAM performance, timing cannot be pushed too far as to eliminate
all timing margins. Margins are necessary to ensure proper device
operation over the expected range of process variations and over a
wide range of operating conditions.
Row Decoder Elements
[0091] Row decode circuits are similar to sense amplifier circuits
in that they also pitch up to memory bit arrays and have a variety
of implementations. A row decode block consists of two basic
elements, a wordline driver and an address decoder tree. There are
three basic configurations for wordline driver circuits that
include the NOR driver, the inverter (CMOS) driver, and the
bootstrap driver. Additionally, the drivers and associated decode
trees can either be configured as local row decodes for each array
section or as global row decodes which drive a multitude of array
sections. Global row decodes connect to multiple arrays through
metal wordline straps. The straps are stitched to the polysilicon
wordlines at specific intervals dictated by the polysilicon
resistance and the desired RC wordline time constant. Most
processes that strap wordlines with metal do not silicide the
polysilicon, although doing so would reduce the number of stitch
regions required. Strapping wordlines and using global row decoders
obviously reduce die size--in some cases very dramatically. The
penalty to strapping is that it requires an additional metal layer
and that this layer is at minimum array pitch. This puts a
tremendous burden on process technologists in which three
conductors are at minimum pitch --wordlines, digitlines, and
wordline straps. Distributed row decoders, on the other hand, do
not require metal straps, but do require additional die size. It is
highly advantageous to reduce the polysilicon resistance in order
to stretch the wordline length and reduce the number of needed row
decodes especially on large DRAMs such as the Igigabit.
[0092] The bootstrap wordline driver shown in FIG. 28 is built
exclusively from NMOS transistors, producing the smallest layout
for the three types of driver circuits. As the name denotes, this
driver relies on bootstrapping principles to bias the output
transistor's gate terminal. This bias voltage must be high enough
to allow the NMOS transistor to drive the wordline to the boosted
wordline voltage Vccp. Operation of the bootstrap driver will be
described with the help of FIG. 29. Initially, the driver is off
and the wordline 16 and phase terminals are at ground. Transistor
M2 holds the wordline at ground since the decoder output signal
DEC* is at Vcc. The gate of pass transistor M3 is fixed at Vcc. The
signals DEC and DEC* are generated by a separate decode circuit.
DEC and DEC*, as a complement pair, represent the first of two
terms necessary to decode the correct wordline. PHASE0 represents
the second term. If DEC rises to Vcc and DEC* drops to ground, as
determined by the decoder, the boot node labeled B1 will rise to
Vcc-V.sub.th volts and transistor M2 will turn off. Transistor M1
continues to hold the wordline to ground since PHASE0 is still at
ground. Once B1 reaches Vcc-V.sub.th. the PHASE signal fires to the
boosted wordline voltage Vccp. As a result of gate to drain and
gate to source capacitance of M1, the gate of M1 will boot to an
elevated voltage, Vboot. This voltage is determined by the
parasitic capacitance of node B1, Cgs1, Cgd1, Vccp and the initial
voltage at B1, Vcc-V.sub.th. Accordingly,
Vboot.congruent.[(VCCP.multidot-
.Cgd1).div.(Cgs1+Cgd1+CB1)]+(Vcc-V.sub.th). In conjunction with the
wordline voltage rising from ground to Vccp, the gate to source
capacitance of M1 provides a secondary boost to the boot node. The
secondary boost helps to ensure that the boot voltage is adequate
to drive the wordline to a full Vccp level.
[0093] The bootstrap driver is turned off by first driving the
PHASE0 signal to ground. M1 remains on, since node B1 cannot drop
below Vcc-V.sub.th, substantially discharging the wordline toward
ground. This is followed by the address decoder turning off,
bringing DEC to ground and DEC* to Vcc. With DEC* at Vcc,
transistor M2 turns on and fully clamps the wordline to ground. A
voltage level translator is required for the PHASE0 signal since it
operates between ground and the boosted voltage Vccp. For a global
row decode configuration, this is not much of a burden. For a local
row decode configuration, the level translators can be very
difficult to implement. Generally, these translators are placed in
array gaps which exist at the intersection of sense amplifier and
row decode blocks, or they are distributed throughout the row
decode block itself. The translators require both PMOS and NMOS
transistors and must be capable of driving large capacitive loads.
Layout of the translators is very difficult, especially since the
overall layout must be as small as possible.
[0094] The second type of wordline driver, shown in FIG. 30, is
called a NOR driver. It is similar to the bootstrap driver in that
two decode terms drive the output transistor from separate
terminals. The NOR driver uses a PMOS transistor for M1 and does
not rely on bootstrapping to derive the gate bias. Rather, the gate
is driven by a voltage translator that converts DEC* from Vcc to
Vccp voltage levels. This translation is necessary to ensure that
M1 remains off for nonselected wordlines since the PHASE signal
that is common to multiple drivers is driven to Vccp. To fire a
specific wordline, DEC* must be low and the appropriate PHASE must
fire high. Generally, there are four to eight PHASE signals per row
decoder block. The NOR driver requires separate level translators
for each PHASE and DEC* signal. The bootstrap driver by comparison
requires translators only for the PHASE signals, far fewer than the
NOR driver.
[0095] The final wordline driver configuration seen in FIG. 31
lacks a specific name, but is sometimes referred to as a CMOS
inverter driver or CMOS driver. Unlike the first two drivers, the
output transistor, M1, has its source terminal permanently
connected to Vccp. This driver, therefore, requires a voltage
translator for each and every wordline. Both decode terms DEC and
PHASE* combine to drive the output stage through the translator.
The advantage of this driver, other than simple operation, is low
power consumption. The CMOS driver conserves power because the
translators drive only the small capacitance associated with a
single wordline driver. The PHASE translators of both the bootstrap
and NOR drivers must drive considerable junction capacitance.
Disadvantages to the CMOS driver are layout complexity and high
standby current. Subthreshold leakage in transistor M1 and the high
drain to source bias (Vccp) cause high standby current for this
design. The bootstrap and NOR drivers do not suffer from high
standby current since Vccp is not applied to the output transistors
when the drivers are disabled. For DRAM designs having thousands of
wordline drivers, the cumulative leakage current can easily exceed
the standby current budget. Only careful design of transistor M1
will prevent this from occurring.
[0096] Address decode trees are the final element of the row decode
block to be discussed. Decode trees are constructed from all types
of logic--static, dynamic, pass gate, or a combination thereof.
Regardless of what type of logic that an address decoder is
implemented with, the layout must completely reside beneath the row
address signal lines to constitute an efficient, minimal design. In
other words, the metal address tracks dictate the die area
available for the decoder. For DRAM designs that utilize global row
decode schemes, the penalty for inefficient design may be
insignificant, but for distributed local row decode schemes, the
die area penalty can be significant. As with memory bits and sense
amplifiers, any time invested in row decode optimization is well
spent.
[0097] The simplest type of address decode tree utilizes static
CMOS logic. Shown in FIG. 32, a simple tree can be designed using
2-input NAND gates 40 and 41. While easy to design schematically,
static logic address trees are not popular, since they waste
silicon and are difficult to lay out efficiently. Static logic
requires two transistors for each address term, one NMOS and one
PMOS--producing a large layout for designs with many address terms.
Furthermore, static gates must be cascaded to accumulate address
terms, adding gate delays with each level. For these and other
reasons, static logic gates are not utilized in row decode address
trees for today's state of the art DRAM.
[0098] The second type of address tree utilizes dynamic logic, the
most prevalent being precharge and evaluate (P&E) logic. Used
by the majority of DRAM manufacturers, P&E address trees come
in a variety of forms, although the differences between one and
another can be subtle. FIG. 33 shows a simplified schematic for one
version of a P&E address tree designed for use with
bootstrapped wordline drivers. P&E address tree circuits
feature one or more PMOS precharge transistors and a cascade of
enable NMOS transistors M2-M4. This P&E design uses half of the
transistors required by the static address tree of FIG. 32. As a
result, the layout of the P&E tree is much smaller than the
static tree, fitting more easily under the address lines. The
PRECHARGE* signal, under control of the RAS chain logic, drives the
precharge transistor. PRECHARGE* and transistor M1 ensure that DEC*
precharges high, disabling the wordline driver and preparing the
tree for row address activation. M7 is a small PMOS transistor
driven by the DEC inverter (M5 and M6). Together, M7 and the
inverter form a latch ensuring that DEC* remains high for all rows
not selected by the row addresses. At the beginning of any RAS
cycle, PRECHARGE* is low and the row addresses are all disabled
(low). After RAS* falls, PRECHARGE* transitions high to turn off
M1. Following this, the row addresses are enabled. If RA1 through
RA3 all go high, then M2-M4 will turn on, overpowering M7 and
driving DEC* to ground and DEC to Vcc. The output of each tree
segment normally drives four bootstrapped wordline drivers--each
connected to a separate PHASE signal. For an array with 256
wordlines, there will be 64 such decode trees.
[0099] The row address lines shown as RA1-RA3 can be either true
and complement address lines or predecoded address lines. Precoded
address lines are formed by logically combining (AND) addresses as
shown in Table 1. Advantages to predecoded addresses include lower
power, since fewer signals make transitions during address changes,
and higher efficiency, since only three transistors are necessary
to decode six addresses for the circuit of FIG. 33. Predecoding is
especially beneficial for redundancy circuits. Predecoded addresses
are used throughout most DRAM designs today.
1TABLE 1 RA0 RA1 PR01(n) 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 2 1 1 3
[0100] The final type of address tree, shown in FIG. 34, utilizes
pass transistor logic. Pass transistor address trees are similar to
P&E trees in many ways. Both designs utilize PMOS precharge
transistors and NMOS address enable transistors. Unlike P&E
logic, though, the NMOS cascade does not terminate at ground.
Rather, the cascade of M2-M4 goes to a PHASE* signal that is high
during precharge and low during the evaluation. The address signals
operate the same as in the P&E tree, high to select and low to
deselect. The pass transistor tree is shown integrated into a CMOS
wordline driver 42. This is necessary since they are generally used
together and their operation is very complementary. The
cross-coupled PMOS transistors of the CMOS level translator provide
a latch necessary to keep the final interstage node biased at Vcc.
The latch has a weak pull-up, easily overpowered by the cascaded
NMOS enable transistors. A pass transistor address tree is not used
with bootstrapped wordline drivers, since the PHASE signal feeds
into the address tree logic rather than into the driver as required
by the bootstrap driver.
Architectural Characteristics
[0101] A detailed description of the two most prevalent array
architectures under consideration for future large scale DRAMs is
provided--the aforementioned open digitline and folded digitline
architectures. To provide a viable point for comparison, each
architecture will be employed in the theoretical construction of 32
Mbit memory blocks for use in a 256 Mbit DRAM. Design parameters
and layout rules from a typical 0.25 .mu.m DRAM process provide the
needed dimensions and constraints for the analysis. Some of these
parameters are shown in Table 2. Examination of DRAM architectures
in the light of a real world design problem permits a more
objective and unbiased comparison. An added benefit to this
approach is that the strengths and weaknesses of either
architecture should become readily apparent.
2 TABLE 2 Parameter Value Digitline width Wdl 0.3 .mu.m Digitline
pitch Pdl 0.6 .mu.m Wordline width Wwl 0.3 .mu.m Wordline pitch for
8F.sup.2 memory bit Pwl8 0.6 .mu.m Wordline pitch for 6F.sup.2
memory bit Pwl6 0.9 .mu.m Cell capacitance Cc 30 fF Digitline
capacitance per memory bit Cdm 0.8 fF Wordline capacitance per
8F.sup.2 memory bit Cw8 0.6 fF Wordline capacitance per 6F.sup.2
memory bit Cw6 0.5 fF Wordline sheet resistance Rs 6.OMEGA./sq
Open Digitline Array Architecture
[0102] The open digitline array architecture was the prevalent
architecture prior to the 64 Kbit DRAM. A modern embodiment of this
architecture as shown in FIG. 35 is constructed with multiple
crosspoint array cores separated by strips of sense amplifier
blocks in one axis and either row decode blocks or wordline
stitching regions in the other axis. Each 128 Kbit array core is
built using 6F.sup.2 memory bit cell pairs. There are a total of
131,072 (2.sup.17) functionally addressable memory bits arranged in
264 rows and 524 digitlines. The 264 rows consist of 256 actual
wordlines, 4 redundant wordlines and 4 dummy wordlines. The 524
digitlines consist of 512 actual digitlines, 8 redundant
digitlines, and 4 dummy digitlines. Photolithography problems
usually occur at the edge of large repetitive structures such as
memory bit arrays. These problems produce malformed or nonuniform
structures, rendering the edge cells useless. Inclusion of dummy
memory bits, wordlines and digitlines on each array edge ensures
that these problems only occur on dummy cells, leaving live cells
unaffected. Although dummy structures make each array core larger,
they also significantly improve device yield, making them necessary
items on all DRAM designs.
[0103] Array core size, as measured in the number of memory bits,
is restricted by two factors--a desire to keep the quantity of
memory bits binary and practical limits on wordline and digitline
length. The need for a binary quantity of memory bits in each array
core derives from the binary nature of DRAM addressing. Given N row
addresses and M column addresses for a given part, there are a
total of 2.sup.N+M addressable memory bits. Address decoding is
greatly simplified within a DRAM if array address boundaries are
derived directly from address bits. Since the addressing is binary,
the boundaries naturally become binary. Therefore, the size of each
array core must necessarily have 2.sup.X addressable rows and
2.sup.Y addressable digitlines. The resulting array core size is
2.sup.X+Y memory bits, which is, of course, a binary number. The
second set of factors limiting array core size is practical limits
on digitline and wordline length. From earlier discussions in
section-II, the digitline capacitance is limited by two factors.
First, the ratio of cell capacitance to digitline capacitance must
fall within a specified range to ensure reliable sensing. Second,
operating current and power for the DRAM is, in large part,
determined by the current required to charge and discharge the
digitlines during each active cycle. For the 256 Mbit generation,
the digitlines are restricted from having connection to more than
256 rows (128 memory bit pairs) because of these power
considerations. Each memory bit connected to a digitline adds
capacitance to the digitline. The power dissipated during a read or
refresh operation is proportional to the digitline capacitance
(Cd), the supply voltage (Vcc), the number of active columns (N),
and the refresh period (P). Accordingly, the power dissipated is
given as Pd=Vccx.multidot.(N.multido-
t.Vcc.multidot.(Cd+Cc)).div.(2.multidot.P) watts. On a 256 Mbit
DRAM in 8K refresh, there are 32,768 (2.sup.15) active columns
during each read, write, or refresh operation. Active array current
and power dissipation for a 256 Mbit DRAM are given in table 3 for
a 90 nS refresh period (-5 timing) at various digitline lengths.
The budget for active array current is limited to 200 mA for this
256 Mbit design. To meet this budget, the digitline cannot exceed a
length of 256 memory bits.
3TABLE 3 Digitline Power Digitline Length Capacitance Active
Current Dissipation 128 memory bits 102 fF 60 mA 199 mW 256 memory
bits 205 fF 121 mA 398 mW 512 memory bits 410 fF 241 mA 795 mW
[0104]
4TABLE 4 Wordline Length Rwl Cwl Time Constant 128 memory bits
1,536 ohms 64 fF 0.098 nS 256 memory bits 3,072 ohms 128 fF 0.39 nS
512 memory bits 6,144 ohms 256 fF 1.57 nS 1024 memory bits 12,288
ohms 512 fF 6.29 nS
[0105] Wordline length, as described in section-II, is limited by
the maximum allowable RC time constant of the wordline. To ensure
acceptable access time for the 256 Mbit DRAM, the wordline time
constant should be kept below four nanoseconds. For a wordline
connected to N memory bits, the total resistance and capacitance
using 0.3 .mu.m polysilicon are
Rwl=Rs.multidot.N.multidot.Pwl.div.0.3 .mu.m ohms and
Cwl=Cw6.multidot.N Farads respectively. Table 4 contains the
effective wordline time constants for various wordline lengths. As
shown in the table, the wordline length cannot exceed 512 memory
bits (512 digitlines) if the wordline time constant is to remain
under four nanoseconds.
[0106] The open digitline architecture does not support digitline
twisting since the true and complement digitlines which constitute
a column are in separate array cores. Therefore, no silicon area is
consumed for twist regions. The 32 Mbit array block requires a
total of 256 128 Kbit array cores in its construction. Each 32 Mbit
block represents an address space comprising a total of 4096 rows
and 8192 columns. A practical configuration for the 32 Mbit block
is depicted in FIG. 36. In this figure, the 256 array cores appear
in a 16 by 16 arrangement. The 16 by 16 arrangement produces 2 Mbit
sections consisting of 256 wordlines and 8192 digitlines (4096
columns). A total of 16 2 Mbit sections are required to form the
complete 32 Mbit block. Sense amplifier strips are positioned
vertically between each 2 Mbit section. Row decode strips or
wordline stitching strips are positioned horizontally between each
array core.
[0107] Layout was generated for the various 32 Mbit elements
depicted in FIG. 36 using commercial IC layout software. This
layout is necessary to obtain reasonable estimates for pitch cell
size. These size estimates, in turn, allow overall dimensions of
the 32 Mbit memory block to be calculated. The results of these
estimates appear in FIG. 36. Essentially, the overall height of the
32 Mbit block can be found by summing the height of the row decode
blocks (or stitch regions) together with the product of wordline
pitch and total number of wordlines. Accordingly,
Height32=(Tr.multidot.Hldec)+(Tdl.multidot.Pd/) microns, where Tr
is the number of local row decoders, ledec is the height of each
decoder, Tdl is the number of wordlines including redundant and
dummy lines, and Pdl is the digitline pitch. Similarly, the width
of the 32 Mbit block is found by summing the total width of the
sense amplifier blocks together with the product of the wordline
pitch and the number of wordlines. This bit of math yields
Width32=(Tsa.multidot.Wamp)+(Twl.multi- dot.Pwl6) microns, where
Tsa is the number of sense amplifier strips, Wamp is the width of
the sense amplifiers, Twl is the total number of wordlines
including redundant and dummy lines, and Pwl6 is the wordline pitch
for the 6F.sup.2 memory bit. Table 5 contains calculation results
for the 32 Mbit block shown in FIG. 36. While overall size is the
best measure of architectural efficiency, a second popular metric
is array efficiency. Array efficiency is determined by dividing the
area consumed by functionally addressable memory bits by the total
die area. To simplify the analysis, peripheral circuits will be
ignored in the array efficiency calculation. Rather, the array
efficiency calculation will only consider the 32 Mbit memory block,
ignoring all other factors. With this simplification, the array
efficiency for a 32 Mbit block is given as
Efficiency=(100.multidot.2.sup.25.multidot.Pdl.multidot.Pwl6).div.(Area32-
) percent, where 2.sup.25 is the number of addressable memory bits
in each 32 Mbit block. The open digitline architecture yields a
calculated array efficiency of 51.7 percent.
5TABLE 5 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 17 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 88 .mu.m Number of
local decode strips Tldec 17 Height of local decode strips Hldec 93
.mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,400 Number of wordlines Twl 4,224
Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 6,621 .mu.m Width of 32 Mbit block
Width32 2,598 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit block Area32 35,078,058
.mu.m
[0108] Unfortunately, the architecture presented in FIG. 36 is
incomplete and the corresponding results do not represent reality.
There are serious implications to using an open digitline
architecture. The first problem is that the sense amplifiers must
connect to two separate array cores. While this requirement is
easily understood, the implications are far from trivial. Memory
block edges present a real problem since the sense amplifiers
cannot be placed outside of arrays as depicted in FIG. 36--they
must always be between arrays. There are two methods of solving
this problem. First, design the sense amplifiers such that the
sense amplifier block contains a set of sense amplifiers for every
digitline in the array. This solution, seen in FIG. 37, eliminates
the need to have sense amplifiers on both sides of an array core
since all of the digitlines connect to a single sense amplifier
block. Not only does this solution eliminate the edge problem, but
it also reduces the 32 Mbit block size since there are only eight
sense amplifier strips instead of the seventeen shown in FIG. 36.
Unfortunately, it is next to impossible to lay out sense amplifiers
in this fashion. Even single metal sense amplifier layout,
considered the tightest layout in the industry, can only achieve
one sense amplifier for every two digitlines.
[0109] A second approach to solving the array edge problem in open
digitline architectures is to maintain the configuration shown in
FIG. 36, but include some form of reference digitline for the edge
sense amplifiers. The reference digitline can assume any form, as
long as it accurately models the capacitance and behavior of a true
digitline. Obviously, the best type of reference digitline is a
true digitline. Therefore, with this approach, additional dummy
array cores are added to both edges of the 32 Mbit memory block as
shown in FIG. 38. The dummy array cores only need half as many
wordlines as a true array core since only half of the digitlines
are connected to any single sense amplifier strip. The unconnected
digitlines are used to double the effective length of the reference
digitlines. While this approach solves the array edge problem, it
results in lower array efficiency and a larger 32 Mbit memory
block. Dummy arrays solve the array edge problem inherent in open
digitline architecture, but they necessitate sense amplifier
layouts that are on the edge of impossible. The problem of sense
amplifier layout is all the worse because of the need to route
global column select lines through the layout. For all intents and
purposes, the sense amplifier layout cannot be completed without
the presence of an additional conductor such as a third metal or
without time multiplexed sensing. Therefore, for the open digitline
architecture to be successful, an additional metal must be added to
the DRAM process.
[0110] The presence of metal3 not only enables the sense amplifier
layout, but also permits the use of either a full or hierarchical
global row decoding scheme. A full global row decoding scheme using
wordline stitching places great demands upon metal and contact/via
technologies, but represents the most efficient use of the
additional metal. Hierarchical row decoding using bootstrap
wordline drivers is slightly less efficient, but relaxes process
requirements significantly. For a balanced perspective, both
approaches, global and hierarchical, were analyzed. The results of
this analysis for the open digitline architecture are summarized in
Tables 6 and 7 respectively. Array efficiency for global and
hierarchical row decoding calculated to 60.5 percent and 55.9
percent respectively for the 32 Mbit memory blocks based upon data
from these tables.
6TABLE 6 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 17 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 88 .mu.m Number of
global decode strips Tgdec 1 Height of global decode strips Hgdec
200 .mu.m Number of stitch regions Nst 17 Height of stitch regions
Hst 10 .mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,400 Number of wordlines Twl
4,488 Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 5,410 .mu.m Width of 32 Mbit
block Width32 5,535 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit block Area32 29,944,350
.mu.m
[0111]
7TABLE 7 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 17 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 88 .mu.m Number of
global decode strips Tgdec 1 Height of global decode strips Hgdec
190 .mu.m Number of hier decode strips Thdec 17 Height of hier
decode strips Hhdec 37 .mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,400 Number
of wordlines Twl 4,488 Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 5,859 .mu.m
Width of 32 Mbit block Width32 5,535 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit block
Area32 32,429,565 .mu.m
Folded Array Architecture
[0112] The folded array architecture depicted in FIG. 39 is the
standard architecture used in today's modern DRAM designs. The
folded architecture is constructed with multiple array cores
separated by strips of sense amplifiers and either row decode
blocks or wordline stitching regions. Unlike the open digitline
architecture, which uses 6F.sup.2 memory bit cell pairs, the folded
array core uses 8F.sup.2 memory bit cell pairs. Modern array cores
include 262,144 (218) functionally addressable memory bits arranged
in 532 rows and 1044 digitlines. The 532 rows consists of 512
actual wordlines, 4 redundant wordlines and 16 dummy wordlines.
Each row (wordline) connects to memory bit transistors on
alternating digitlines. The 1044 digitlines consist of 1024 actual
digitlines (512 columns), 16 redundant digitlines (8 columns) and 4
dummy digitlines. As discussed earlier, photolithography
limitations necessitate the use of the dummy wordlines and
digitlines. These photo problems are very pronounced at the edges
of large repetitive structures such as the array core.
[0113] Sense amplifier blocks are placed on both sides of each
array core. The sense amplifiers within each block are laid out at
quarter pitch--one sense amplifier for every four digitlines. Each
sense amplifier connects through isolation devices to columns
(digitline pairs) from both adjacent array cores. Odd columns
connect on one side of the core and even columns connect on the
opposite side. Each sense amplifier block is therefore connected to
only odd or even columns, never connecting to both odd and even
columns within the same block. Connecting to both odd and even
columns requires a half pitch sense amplifier layout--one sense
amplifier for every two digitlines. While half pitch layout is
possible with certain DRAM processes, the bulk of production DRAM
designs remains quarter pitch due to ease of layout. The analysis
presented in this section is accordingly based upon quarter pitch
design practices.
[0114] Location of row decode blocks for the array core depends
upon the number of available metal layers. For one and two metal
processes, local row decode blocks are located at the top and
bottom edges of the core. Three and four metal processes support
the use of global row decodes. Global row decodes require only
stitch regions or local wordline drivers at the top and bottom
edges of the core. Stitch regions consume much less silicon area
than local row decodes, substantially increasing array efficiency
for the DRAM. The array core also includes digitline twist regions
that run parallel to the wordlines. These regions provide the die
area required for digitline twisting. Depending upon the particular
twisting scheme selected for a design (see section-II), the array
core will need between one and three twist regions. For the sake of
analysis, a triple twist is assumed, since it offers the best
overall noise performance and is the choice of DRAM manufacturers
on advanced large scale applications. Each twist region constitutes
a break in the array structure, necessitating the inclusion of
dummy wordlines. For this reason, there are 16 dummy wordlines (2
for each array edge) in the folded array core rather than 4 dummy
wordlines as in the open digitline architecture.
[0115] The array core for folded digitline architectures contains
more memory bits than is possible for open digitline architectures.
Larger core size is an inherent feature of folded architectures
arising from the very nature of the architecture. Folded
architectures get their name from the fact that a folded array core
results from folding two open digitline array cores one on top of
the other. The digitlines and wordlines from each folded core are
spread apart (double pitch) to allow room for the other folded
core. After folding, each constituent core remains intact and
independent, except for memory bit changes (8F.sup.2 conversion)
that are necessary in the folded architecture. The array core size
doubles since the total number of digitlines and wordlines doubles
in the folding process. It does not quadruple as one might suspect,
because the two constituent folded cores remain independent--the
wordlines from one folded core do not connect to memory bits in the
other folded core. Digitline pairing (column formation) is a
natural outgrowth of the folding process since each wordline only
connects to memory bits on alternating digitlines. The existence of
digitline pairs (columns) is the one characteristic of folded
digitline architectures that produces superior signal-to-noise
performance. Furthermore, the digitlines that form a column are
physically adjacent to one another. This feature permits various
digitline twisting schemes to be used, as discussed in section-II,
which further improves signal-to-noise.
8TABLE 8 Wordline Length Rwl Cwl Time Constant 128 memory bits
3.072 ohms 77 fF 0.24 nS 256 memory bits 6,144 ohms 154 fF 0.95 nS
512 memory bits 12,288 ohms 307 fF 3.77 nS 1024 memory bits 24,576
ohms 614 fF 15.09 nS
[0116] Similar to the open digitline architecture, digitline length
for the folded digitline architecture is again limited by power
dissipation and minimum cell to digitline capacitance ratio. For
the 256 Mbit generation, digitlines are restricted from having
connection to more than 256 cells (128 memory bit pairs). The
analysis to arrive at this quantity is similar to that for the open
digitline architecture. Refer back to Table 3 to view the
calculated results of power dissipation versus digitline length for
a 256 Mbit DRAM in 8K refresh. Wordline length is again limited by
the maximum allowable RC time constant of the wordline. Contrary to
an open digitline architecture in which each wordline connects to
memory bits on each digitline, the wordlines in a folded digitline
architecture only connect to memory bits on alternating digitlines.
Therefore, a wordline can cross 1024 digitlines while only
connecting to 512 memory bit transistors. The wordlines will have
twice the overall resistance, but only slightly more capacitance
since the wordlines run over field oxide on alternating digitlines.
Table 8 contains the effective wordline time constants for various
wordline lengths for a folded array core. For a wordline connected
to N memory bits, the total resistance and capacitance using 0.3
.mu.m polysilicon are Rwl=2.multidot.N.multidot.Pwl.div.0.3 .mu.m
ohms and Cwl=Cw8.multidot.N farads respectively. As shown in Table
8, the wordline length cannot exceed 512 memory bits (1024
digitlines) for the wordline time constant to remain under four
nanoseconds. Although the wordline connects to only 512 memory
bits, it is two times longer (1024 digitlines) than wordlines in
open digitline array cores. The folded digitline architecture
therefore requires half as many row decode blocks or wordline
stitching regions as the open digitline architecture.
[0117] A diagram of a 32 Mbit array block using folded digitline
architecture is shown in FIG. 40. This block requires a total of
128 256 Kbit array cores. In this figure, the 128 array cores are
arranged in an 8 row by 16 column configuration. The 16 column by 8
row arrangement produces 2 Mbit sections consisting of 256
wordlines and 8192 digitlines (4096 columns). A total of 16 2 Mbit
sections form the complete 32 Mbit array block. Sense amplifier
strips are positioned vertically between each 2 Mbit section, as
was done in the open digitline architecture. Again, row decode
blocks or wordline stitching regions are positioned horizontally
between the array cores.
[0118] The 32 Mbit array block shown in FIG. 40 includes size
estimates for the various pitch cells. Layout was generated where
necessary to arrive at the size estimates. Overall size for the
folded digitline 32 Mbit block can be found by again summing the
dimensions for each component. Accordingly,
Height32=(Tr.multidot.Hrdec)+(Tdl.multidot.Pdl) microns, where Tr
is the number of row decoders, Hrdec is the height of each decoder,
Tdl is the number of digitlines including redundant and dummy, and
Pdl is the digitline pitch. Similarly, Width32=(Tsa.multidot.W-
amp)+(Twl.multidot.Pwl8)+(Ttwist.multidot.Wtwist) microns, where
Tsa is the number of sense amplifier strips, Wamp is the width of
the sense amplifiers, Twl is the total number of wordlines
including redundant and dummy, Pwl8 is the wordline pitch for the
8F.sup.2 memory bit, Ttwist is the total number of twist regions,
and Wtwist is the width of the twist regions. Table 9 shows the
calculated results for the 32 Mbit block shown in FIG. 40. This
table assumes the use of a double metal process necessitating the
use of local row decoder blocks. Note that Table 9 contains
approximately twice as many wordlines as Table 5 for the open
digitline architecture. The reason for this is that each wordline
in the folded array only connects to memory bits on alternating
digitlines, whereas each wordline in the open array connects to
memory bits on every digitline. A folded digitline design therefore
needs twice as many wordlines as a comparable open digitline
design.
9TABLE 9 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 17 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 45 .mu.m Number of
local decode strips Tldec 9 Height of local decode strips Hldec 93
.mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,352 Number of wordlines Twl 8,512
Number of twist regions Ttwist 48 Width of twist regions Wtwist 6
.mu.m Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 6,592 .mu.m Width of 32 Mbit
block Width32 6,160 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit block Area32 40,606,720
.mu.m
[0119] Array efficiency for the 32 Mbit memory block from FIG. 40
is again found by dividing the area consumed by functionally
addressable memory bits by the total die area. For a simplified
analysis, the peripheral circuits are ignored. Array efficiency for
the 32 Mbit block is therefore given as
Efficiency=(100.multidot.2.sup.25.multidot.Pdl.multidot.2.multid-
ot.Pwl8).div.(Area32) percent, which yields 59.5 percent for the
folded array design example.
[0120] The addition of metal3 to the DRAM process enables the use
of either a global or hierarchical row decoding scheme--similar to
the open digitline analysis. While global row decoding and stitched
wordlines achieve the smallest die size, they also place greater
demands upon the fabrication process. For a balanced perspective,
both approaches were analyzed for the folded digitline
architecture. The results of this analysis are presented in Tables
10 and 11. Array efficiency for the 32 Mbit memory blocks using
global and hierarchical row decoding calculated to 74.0 percent and
70.9 percent respectively.
10TABLE 10 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 17 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 45 .mu.m Number of
global decode strips Tgdec 1 Height of global decode strips Hgdec
200 .mu.m Number of stitch regions Nst 9 Height of stitch regions
Hst 10 .mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,352 Number of wordlines Twl
8,512 Number of twist regions Ttwist 48 Width of twist regions
Wtwist 6 .mu.m Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 5,301 .mu.m Width
of 32 Mbit block Width32 6,160 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit block Area32
32,654,160 .mu.m
[0121]
11 TABLE 11 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 17 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 45 .mu.m Number of
global decode strips Tgdec 1 Height of global decode strips Hgdec
190 .mu.m Number of hier decode stripes Nhdec 9 Height of hier
decode strips Hhec 37 .mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,352 Number
of wordlines Twl 8,512 Number of twist regions Ttwist 48 Width of
twist regions Wtwist 6 .mu.m Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 5,534
.mu.m Width of 32 Mbit block Width32 6,160 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit
block Area32 34,089,440 .mu.m
Advanced Bilevel DRAM Architecture
[0122] The present invention provides a novel advanced architecture
for use on future large scale DRAMs. A 32 Mbit memory block is
described with this new architecture for use in a 256 Mbit DRAM.
The results achieved with the new architecture are compared to
those obtained for the open digitline and folded digitline
architectures described above.
[0123] The bilevel digitline architecture is an innovation which
has created a new DRAM array configuration--one that allows the use
of 6F.sup.2 memory bits in an otherwise folded digitline array
configuration.
[0124] 6F.sup.2 memory cells are a byproduct of crosspoint style
(open digitline) array blocks. Crosspoint style array blocks
require that every wordline connect to memory bit transistors on
every digitline, precluding the formation of digitline pairs. Yet,
digitline pairs (columns) remain an essential element in folded
digitline type operation. Digitline pairs and digitline twisting
are important features that provide for good signal to noise
performance. The bilevel digitline architecture solves the
crosspoint and digitline pair dilemma through vertical integration.
Essentially, two open digitline crosspoint array sections 100 are
placed side by side as seen in FIG. 41. Digitlines in one array
section are designated as true digitlines 106(b) and 104(b) while
digitlines from the second array section are designated as
complement digitlines 104(a) and 106(a). An additional conductor is
added to the DRAM process to complete formation of the digitline
pairs. The added conductor allows digitlines from each array
section to route across the other array section--both true and
complement digitlines being vertically aligned. At the juncture 108
between each section, the true and complement signals are
vertically twisted. This twisting allows the true digitline to
connect to memory bits in one array section and the complement
digitline to connect to memory bits in the other array section. The
twisting concept is illustrated in FIG. 42.
[0125] To improve signal to noise characteristics of this design,
the single twist region is replaced by three twist regions as
illustrated in FIG. 43. An added benefit to multiple twist regions
is that only half of the digitline pairs actually twist within each
region, thus making room in the twist region form each twist region
for each twist to occur. The twist regions are equally spaced at
the 25%, 50%, and 75% marks in the overall array. Assuming that
even digitline pairs twist at the 50% mark, then odd digitlines
twist at the 25% and 75% marks. Each component of a digitline pair,
true and complement, spends half of its overall length on the
bottom conductor connecting to memory bits and half of its length
on the top conductor. This characteristic balances the capacitance
and the number of memory bits associated with each digitline.
Furthermore, the triple twisting scheme guarantees that the noise
terms are balanced for each digitline, producing excellent signal
to noise performance.
[0126] A variety of vertical twisting schemes is possible with the
bilevel digitline architecture. As shown in FIGS. 44A-C, each
scheme utilizes conductive layers already present in the DRAM
process to complete the twist. Vertical twisting is simplified
since only half of the digitlines are involved in a given twist
region. The final selection of a twisting scheme is based upon
available process technology, yield factors and die size
consideration.
[0127] FIG. 44A illustrates one architecture where a multi-level
digit line pair having a digit and digit complement line is
fabricated in a semiconductor die. The two digit lines are
separated into multiple segments by a vertical twist 108 which
allows one segment of a digit line to be vertically located below a
segment of another digit line on one side of the twist while having
the vertical locations reversed on the other side of the vertical
twist. The multi-level digit line pair is preferably fabricated
using three levels of the memory die. Two of the levels are used
for the digit lines 104 and 106 while the third level is used for
conductive lines 105(a) and (b). It will be appreciated that the
third level is not required, but the horizontal area requirement
will be increased by locating lines 105 on the second level. The
multiple levels are connected via vertical conductive connections
107. Connections 107 can be any conductive material and are
preferably fabricated as either a polysilicon plug or a metal plug.
Memory cells are coupled to a digit line when that digit line is
located vertically below the other digit line. That is, digit lines
104(b) and 106(a) are coupled to memory cells.
[0128] FIG. 44B illustrates an architecture where the lines 105 are
fabricated on two separate levels, thereby requiring four levels of
the semiconductor. This architecture reduces the horizon area
requirements. FIG. 44C illustrates a memory where the conductive
lines 105 are fabricated above the digit line pair.
[0129] The architectures of FIGS. 44A, B and C include one vertical
twist and are presented to illustrate different possible
fabrication techniques. It will be appreciated that the memory can
be designed with multiple vertical twists per digit line pair such
that, in total, half of each digit line is coupled to memory cells.
Further, the digit lines, conductive lines 105, and connections 107
can be fabricated using available conductive materials, including
but not limited to metal, polysilicon and doped regions in the
substrate.
[0130] To further advance the bilevel digitline architecture
concept, its 6F.sup.2 memory bit was modified to improve yield.
Shown in arrayed form in FIG. 45, the `plaid` memory bit is
constructed using long parallel strips of active area 110
vertically separated by traditional field oxide isolation.
Wordlines 116 run perpendicular to the active area in straight
strips of polysilicon. Plaid memory bits are again constructed in
pairs that share a common contact 122 to the digitline 104 or 106.
Isolation gates 118 (transistors) formed with additional
polysilicon strips provide horizontal isolation between memory
bits. Isolation is obtained from these gates by permanently
connecting the isolation gate polysilicon to either a ground or
negative potential. The use of isolation gates in this memory bit
design eliminates one and two dimensional encroachment problems
associated with normal isolation processes. Furthermore, many
photolithography problems are eliminated from the DRAM process as a
result of the straight, simple design of both the active area and
polysilicon in the memory bit. The `plaid` designation for this
memory bit is derived from the similarity between an array of
memory bits and tartan fabric--very apparent in a color array plot.
Isolation transistors having a gate connected to a bias potential
have been used for isolation in pitch cells in prior memory
devices. Isolation gates, however, have not been used in a memory
array.
[0131] In the bilevel and folded digitline architectures, both true
and complement digitlines exist in the same array core.
Accordingly, the sense amplifier block needs only one sense
amplifier for every two digitline pairs. For the folded digitline
architecture, this yields one sense amplifier for every four metal1
digitlines--quarter pitch. The bilevel digitline architecture that
uses vertical digitline stacking needs one sense amplifier for
every two metal1 digitlines--half pitch. Sense amplifier layout is
therefore more difficult for bilevel than folded designs. The
triple metal DRAM process needed for bilevel architectures
concurrently enables and simplifies sense amplifier layout. Metal1
is used for lower level digitlines and local routing within the
sense amplifiers and row decoders. Metal2 is available for upper
level digitlines and column select signal routing through the sense
amplifiers. Metal3 can therefore be used for column select routing
across the arrays and control and power routing through the sense
amplifiers. The function of metal2 and metal3 can easily be swapped
in the sense amplifier block depending upon layout preferences and
design objectives.
[0132] Wordline pitch is effectively relaxed for the plaid 6F.sup.2
memory bit used in the bilevel digitline architecture. The memory
bit is still built using the minimum process feature size of 0.3
.mu.m. The relaxed wordline pitch stems from structural differences
between a folded digitline memory bit and an open digitline or
plaid memory bit. There are essentially four wordlines running
across each folded digitline memory bit pair compared to two
wordlines that run across each open digitline or plaid memory bit
pair. Although the plaid memory bit is 25% shorter than a folded
memory bit (3 features versus 4 features), it also has half as many
wordlines, effectively reducing the wordline pitch. This relaxed
wordline pitch makes layout much easier for the wordline drivers
and address decode tree. In fact, both odd and even wordlines can
be driven from the same row decoder block, thus eliminating half of
the row decoder strips in a given array block. This is an important
consideration since the tight wordline pitch for folded digitline
designs necessitates separate odd and even row decode strips.
[0133] The bilevel digitline array architecture depicted in FIG. 46
is the preferred architecture for tomorrow's large scale DRAM
designs. The bilevel architecture is constructed with multiple
array cores 100 separated by strips of sense amplifiers 124 and
either row decode blocks or wordline stitching regions. Wordline
stitching requires a four metal process while row decode blocks can
be implemented in a three metal process. The array cores include
262, 144 (225) functionally addressable plaid 6F.sup.2 memory bits
arranged in 532 rows and 524 bilevel digitline pairs. The 532 rows
consist of 512 actual wordlines, 4 redundant wordlines, and 16
dummy wordlines. There are also 267 isolation gates in each array
due to the use of plaid memory bits, but since they are accounted
for in the wordline pitch, they can be ignored. The 524 bilevel
digitline pairs consist of 512 actual digitline pairs, 8 redundant
digitline pairs, and 4 dummy digitline pairs. The term "digitline
pair" is used in describing the array core structure since pairing
is a natural product of the bilevel architecture. Each digitline
pair consists of one digitline on metal1 and a vertically aligned
complementary digitline on metal2.
[0134] Sense amplifier blocks are placed on both sides of each
array core. The sense amplifiers within each block are laid out at
half pitch--one sense amplifier for every two metal1 digitlines.
Each sense amplifier connects through isolation devices to columns
(digitline pairs) from two adjacent array cores. Similar to the
folded digitline architecture, odd columns connect on one side of
the array core and even columns connect on the other side. Each
sense amplifier block is then exclusively connected to either odd
or even columns, never both.
[0135] Unlike a folded digitline architecture that needs a local
row decode block connected to both sides of an array core, the
bilevel digitline architecture only needs a local row decode block
connected to one side of each core. As stated earlier, the relaxed
wordline pitch allows both odd and even rows to be driven from the
same local row decoder block. This feature helps make the bilevel
digitline architecture more efficient than alternative
architectures. A four metal DRAM process allows local row decodes
to be replaced by either stitch regions or local wordline drivers.
Either approach could substantially reduce die size. The array core
also includes the three twist regions that are necessary for the
bilevel digitline architecture. The twist region is somewhat larger
than that used in the folded digitline architecture, due to the
complexity of twisting digitlines vertically. The twist regions
again constitute a break in the array structure, necessitating the
inclusion of dummy wordlines.
[0136] As with the open digitline and folded digitline
architecture, the bilevel digitline length is limited by power
dissipation and minimum cell to digitline capacitance ratio. In the
256 Mbit generation, the digitlines are again restricted from
having connection to more than 256 memory bits (128 memory bit
pairs). The analysis to arrive at this quantity is the same as that
for the open digitline architecture, except that the overall
digitline capacitance is higher since the digitline runs equal
lengths in metal2 and metal1. The capacitance added by the metal2
component is small compared to the metal1 component since metal2
does not connect to memory bit transistors. Overall, the digitline
capacitance increases by about 25 percent compared to an open
digitline. The power dissipated during a read or refresh operation
is proportional to the digitline capacitance (Cd), the supply
voltage (Vcc), the number of active columns (N), and the refresh
period (P) and is given as
Pd=Vccx.multidot.(N.multidot.Vcc(Cd+Cc)).div.(2.multidot.P) watts.
On a 256 Mbit DRAM in 8K refresh there are 32,768 (215) active
columns during each read, write, or refresh operation. Active array
current and power dissipation for a 256 Mbit DRAM are given in
Table 12 for a 90 nS refresh period (-5 timing) at various
digitline lengths. The budget for active array current is limited
to 200 mA for this 256 Mbit design. To meet this budget, the
digitline cannot exceed a length of 256 memory bits.
12TABLE 12 Digitline Digitline Length Capacitance Active current
Power Dissipation 128 memory bits 128 fF 75 mA 249 mW 256 memory
bits 256 fF 151 mA 498 mW 512 memory bits 513 fF 301 mA 994 mW
[0137] Wordline length is again limited by the maximum allowable RC
time constant of the wordline. The calculation for bilevel
digitline is identical to that performed for open digitline due the
similarity of array core design. These results are given in Table 4
above. Accordingly, the wordline length cannot exceed 512 memory
bits (512 bilevel digitline pairs) if the wordline time constant is
to remain under the required four nanosecond limit.
[0138] Layout of various bilevel elements was generated to obtain
reasonable estimates of pitch cell size. These size estimates allow
overall dimensions for a 32 Mbit array block to be calculated. The
diagram for a 32 Mbit array block using the bilevel digitline
architecture is shown in FIG. 47. This block requires a total of
128 256Kbit array cores. The 128 array cores are arranged in 16
rows and 8 columns. Each 4 Mbit vertical section consists of 512
wordlines and 8192 bilevel digitline pairs (8192 columns). A total
of eight 4 Mbit strips are required to form the complete 32 Mbit
block. Sense amplifier blocks are positioned vertically between
each 4 Mbit section. Row decode strips are positioned horizontally
between every array core. There are only a total of eight row
decode strips needed for the sixteen array cores since each row
decode contains wordline drivers for both odd and even rows.
[0139] The 32 Mbit array block shown in FIG. 47 includes pitch cell
layout estimates. Overall size for the 32 Mbit block is found by
summing the dimensions for each component. As before,
Height32=(Tr.multidot.Hrdec)+(T- dl.multidot.Pdl) microns where Tr
is the number of bilevel row decoders, Hrdec is the height of each
decoder, Tdl is the number of bilevel digitline pairs including
redundant and dummy, and Pdl is the digitline pitch. Also,
Width32=(Tsa.multidot.Wamp)+(Twl.multidot.Pwl6)+(Ttwist.mult-
idot.Wtwist) microns, where Tsa is the number of sense amplifier
strips, Wamp is the width of the sense amplifiers, Twl is the total
number of wordlines including redundant and dummy, Pwl6 is the
wordline pitch for the plaid 6F.sup.2 memory bit, Ttwist is the
total number of twist regions, and Wtwist is the width of the twist
regions. Table 13 shows the calculated results for the bilevel 32
Mbit block shown in FIG. 47. A triple metal process is assumed in
these calculations since it requires the use of local row decoders.
Array efficiency for the bilevel digitline 32 Mbit array block is
given as Efficiency=(100.multidot.2.sup.25.multido-
t.Pdl.multidot.2.multidot.Pwl6).div.(Area32) percent, which yields
63.1 percent for this design example.
13 TABLE 13 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 9 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 65 .mu.m Number of
local decode strips Tldec 8 Height of local decode strips Hldec 149
.mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,352 Number of wordlines Twl 4,256
Number of twist regions Ttwist 24 Width of twist regions Wtwist 9
.mu.m Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 6,203 .mu.m Width of 32 Mbit
block Width32 4,632 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit block Area32 28,732,296
.mu.m
[0140] With metal4 added to the bilevel DRAM process, the local row
decoder scheme can be replaced by a global or hierarchical row
decoder scheme. The addition of a fourth metal to the DRAM process
places even greater demands upon process technologists. Regardless,
an analysis of 32 Mbit array block size was performed assuming the
availability of metal4. The results of the analysis are shown in
Tables 14 and 15 for the global and hierarchical row decode
schemes. Array efficiency for the 32 Mbit memory block using global
and hierarchical row decoding calculates to 74.5 percent and 72.5
percent respectively.
14 TABLE 14 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 9 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 65 .mu.m Number of
global decode strips Tgdec 1 Height of global decode strips Hgdec
200 .mu.m Number of stitch regions Nst 4 Height of stitch regions
Hst 10 .mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,352 Number of wordlines Twl
4,256 Number of twist regions Ttwist 24 Width of twist regions
Wtwist 9 .mu.m Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 5,251 .mu.m Width
of 32 Mbit block Width32 4,632 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit block Area32
24,322,632 .mu.m
[0141]
15 TABLE 15 Description Parameter Size Number of sense amplifier
strips Tsa 9 Width of sense amplifiers Wamp 65 .mu.m Number of
global decode strips Tgdec 1 Height of global decode strips Hgdec
190 .mu.m Number of hier decode stripes Nhdec 4 Height of hier
decode strips Hhec 48 .mu.m Number of digitlines Tdl 8,352 Number
of wordlines Twl 4,256 Number of twist regions Ttwist 24 Width of
twist regions Wtwist 9 .mu.m Height of 32 Mbit block Height32 5,393
.mu.m Width of 32 Mbit block Width32 4,632 .mu.m Area of 32 Mbit
block Area32 24,980,376 .mu.m
Architectural Comparison
[0142] Although a straight comparison of DRAM architectures might
appear simple, in actual fact it is a very complicated problem.
Profit remains the critical test of architectural efficiency and is
the true basis for comparison. This in turn requires accurate yield
and cost estimates for each alternative. Without these estimates
and a thorough understanding of process capabilities, conclusions
are elusive and the exercise remains academic. The data necessary
to perform the analysis and render a decision also varies from
manufacturer to manufacturer. Accordingly, a conclusive comparison
of the various array architectures is not possible. Rather, the
architectures will be compared in light of the available data. To
better facilitate a comparison, the 32 Mbit array block size data
is summarized in Table 16 for the open digitline, folded digitline,
and bilevel digitline architectures.
16TABLE 16 32 Mbit Area Architecture Row Decode Metals
(.mu.m.sup.2) Efficiency (%) Open Digit Global 3 29,944,350 60.5
Open Digit Hier 3 32,429,565 55.9 Folded Digit Local 2 40,606,720
59.5 Folded Digit Global 3 32,654,160 74.0 Folded Digit Hier 3
34,089,440 70.9 Bilevel Digit Local 3 28,732,296 63.1 Bilevel Digit
Global 4 24,322,632 74.5 Bilevel Digit Hier 4 24,980,376 72.5
[0143] From Table 16 it can be concluded that overall die size (32
Mbit Area) is a better metric for comparison than array efficiency.
For instance, the triple metal folded digitline design using
hierarchical row decodes has an area of 34,089,440 .mu.m.sup.2 and
an efficiency of 70.9%. The triple metal bilevel digitline design
with local row decodes has an efficiency of only 63.1%, but an
overall area of 28,732,296 .mu.m.sup.2. Array efficiency for the
folded digitline is higher, but this is misleading, since the
folded digitline yields a die that is 18.6% larger for the same
number of conductors. Table 16 also illustrates that the bilevel
digitline architecture always yields that smallest die area,
regardless of the configuration. The smallest folded digitline
design at 32,654,160 .mu.m.sup.2 and the smallest open digitline
design at 29,944,350 .mu.m.sup.2 are still larger than the largest
bilevel digitline design at 28,732,296 .mu.m.sup.2. Also apparent
is that the bilevel and open digitline architectures both need at
least three conductors in their construction. The folded digitline
architecture still has a viable design option using only two
conductors. The penalty to two conductors is, of course, a much
larger die size--a full 41% larger than the triple metal bilevel
digitline design.
Conclusion
[0144] A novel bilevel digitline architecture for use on advanced
DRAM designs has been described. The bilevel digitline architecture
achieves significant reductions in die size while maintaining the
high signal to noise performance of traditional folded digitline
architectures. The bilevel digitline uses vertically stacked
digitline pairs connected to arrays of 6F.sup.2 or smaller memory
cells. Vertical digitline twisting ensures balanced noise
cancellation and equalizes the quantity of memory cells contacting
each digitline. DRAM die size reduction results primarily from the
use of smaller memory cells in crosspoint style arrays and
secondarily from efficient pitch cell utilization. Overall, the
bilevel digitline approach presented combines the best
characteristics of both folded and open digitline architectures
into an efficient new DRAM architecture.
[0145] Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and
described herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill
in the art that any arrangement which is calculated to achieve the
same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiment shown.
This application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations
of the present invention. Therefore, it is manifestly intended that
this invention be limited only by the claims and the equivalents
thereof.
* * * * *