High-speed cell-sensing unit for a semiconductor memory device
US6009032A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 4, 1999 |
| Grant date | Dec 28, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 4, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11C7/062
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A cell-sensing unit is applied to a memory device having a cell associated operably with a complementary pair of bit lines and a word line. The cell-sensing unit includes a current sense amplifier having a first input side adapted to be connected to the bit lines, and a first output side, and a voltage amplifier having a second input side connected to the first output side of the current sense amplifier, and a second output side. The current sense amplifier is capable of magnifying a difference between currents flowing through the bit lines during a read cycle of the cell, and generates a corresponding voltage difference at the first output side. The voltage difference is received by the voltage amplifier at the second input side, and has a magnitude sufficient to enable the voltage amplifier to generate an output signal at the second output side corresponding to data stored in the cell.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.