Interconnection network for connecting memory cells to sense amplifiers
US6269040A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 26, 2000 |
| Grant date | Jul 31, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 26, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11C7/18
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An interconnection network for connecting memory cells to sense amplifiers in a memory device includes a plurality of sub-arrays having memory cells, a plurality of switch units each of which is associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of sub-arrays, and true and complement input lines of the sense amplifiers each of which receives data from a selected memory cell via an input line and reference from reference cells via the other input line. The reference, which is a mid-level of data in the memory cells, is obtained from a reference cell having the mid-level value. Alternatively, a mid-level reference may be obtained by averaging data of logic values "1" and "0" stored in different reference cells. The reference cells may be disposed in the sub-arrays or outside the sub-arrays. The interconnection network of the present invention has symmetric configuration so that networks of the input lines of the sense amplifiers have substantially equal structure. Both inputs of a sense amplifier have substantially equal number of connections to data columns and reference columns.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.