Concurrent programming and program verification of floating gate transistor
US7428172B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 17, 2006 |
| Grant date | Sep 23, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 2, 2027 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11C16/30
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A program voltage is applied to the drain electrode of a floating gate transistor to program the floating gate transistor. Concurrent with the application of the program voltage, a current based on the voltage at the source electrode of the floating gate transistor is compared with a threshold current to verify the programming of the floating gate transistor. When the bit cell current falls below the threshold current, the floating gate transistor is considered to be sufficiently programmed and the next floating gate transistor to be programmed is selected. Further, the program voltage supply emulates the selection circuitry used to select between the bit cells so as to model the voltage drop caused by the selection circuitry between the program voltage supply and the drain electrode of the floating gate transistor being programmed. The program voltage supply adjusts the output program voltage based on the modeled voltage drop.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.