Static information storage and retrieval – Read/write circuit – Bad bit
Reexamination Certificate
2002-06-07
2003-07-22
Mai, Son (Department: 2818)
Static information storage and retrieval
Read/write circuit
Bad bit
C365S145000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06597608
ABSTRACT:
This application claims the benefit of Korean Application No. 2001-0032475 filed Jun. 11, 2001, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor memory device, and more particularly, to a column repair circuit and method of a nonvolatile ferroelectric memory device.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Generally, a nonvolatile ferroelectric memory, i.e., a ferroelectric random access memory (FRAM) has a data processing speed equal to a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and retains data even in power off. For this reason, the nonvolatile ferroelectric memory has received much attention as a next generation memory device.
The FRAM and DRAM are memory devices with similar structures, but the FRAM includes a ferroelectric capacitor having a high residual polarization characteristic. The residual polarization characteristic permits data to be maintained even if an electric field is removed.
FIG. 1
shows hysteresis loop of a general ferroelectric. As shown in
FIG. 1
, even if polarization induced by the electric field has the electric field removed, data is maintained at a certain amount (i.e., d and a states) without being erased due to the presence of residual polarization (or spontaneous polarization). A nonvolatile ferroelectric memory cell is used as a memory device by corresponding the d and a states to 1 and 0, respectively.
A related art nonvolatile ferroelectric memory device will now be described.
FIG. 2
shows a unit cell of a related art nonvolatile ferroelectric memory.
As shown in
FIG. 2
, the related art nonvolatile ferroelectric memory can include a bitline B/L formed in one direction, a wordline W/L formed to cross the bitline, a plate line P/L spaced apart from the wordline in the same direction as the wordline, a transistor T with a gate connected with the wordline and a source connected with the bitline, and a ferroelectric capacitor FC. A first terminal of the ferroelectric capacitor FC is connected with a drain of the transistor T and a second terminal is connected with the plate line P/L.
A redundancy algorithm of the related art nonvolatile ferroelectric memory device will now be described with reference to FIG.
3
.
As shown in
FIG. 3
, a full address memory test and a fail bit analysis are carried out in such a manner that a chip test is carried out after a prior process to find out a fail address.
When the analyzed fail address can be repaired by a row repair circuit, a fuse is cut using a laser beam to code a corresponding address in a row repair fuse block.
Once the corresponding fail address is input after the fuse cutting is completed, an active signal of the repair circuit is generated to activate a repair cell.
Meanwhile, a main cell corresponding to the fail address is inactivated by an inactive signal of the repair circuit.
Therefore, the main cell of a corresponding fail address is inactivated while the repair cell is activated.
The aforementioned related art method for repairing a fail address of a nonvolatile semiconductor memory device has several problems.
If a fail bit is generated, the analysis step of the fail bit is additionally required. In this case, a problem arises in that the redundancy algorithm becomes complicated. For this reason, there is limitation in reducing the redundancy time.
Furthermore, since the fuse is cut using the laser beam to repair the failed cell, it is difficult to change or add the redundancy algorithm at any time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a column repair circuit and method of a nonvolatile ferroelectric memory device that substantially obviates one or more of problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.
The present invention provides a column repair circuit and method of a nonvolatile ferroelectric memory device, in which a redundancy cell having a ferroelectric capacitor is provided without a separate fail bit analysis and fuse cutting, to change or add a redundancy algorithm at any time.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.
To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described, in a column repair circuit of a nonvolatile ferroelectric memory device having a repair logic unit therein, the column repair circuit can include: a memory test logic block generating a redundancy active pulse (RAP) and a corresponding fail input/output (IO) number FION<r> if a column address including a fail bit to be repaired is found during test; a power-up sensor generating a power-up pulse if a stable power source voltage is sensed; a first redundancy control block generating first to fifth control signals ENN, ENP, EQN, CPL, and PREC and a sixth control signal ENW in response to the RAP and the power-up pulse; a counter generating n bit counter bit signal increased by one bit through the RAP to correspond to the number of redundancy bits; a redundancy counter decoding control block generating an activated coding signal ENW<n> in response to the counter bit signal of the counter and the sixth control signal ENW; and a redundancy coding block coding a fail column address in response to the coding signal ENW<n>, the first to fifth control signals, the first and second address signals ADD and ADDB, and the fail IO number FION<r>, and coding a fail IO bus.
In another aspect of the present invention, a column repair method of a nonvolatile ferroelectric memory device having a repair logic unit therein, the column repair method can include the steps of: generating a redundancy active pulse (RAP) and a corresponding fail input/output (IO) number FION<r> in a memory test logic block if a column address including a fail bit to be repaired is found during test; generating a power-up pulse in a power-up sensor if a stable power source voltage is sensed; generating first to fifth control signals ENN, ENP, EQN, CPL, and PREC and a sixth control signal ENW in response to the RAP and the power-up pulse; generating n bit counter bit signal in a counter, the n bit counter bit signal being increased by one bit through the RAP to correspond to the number of redundancy bits; generating an activated coding signal ENW<n> in response to the counter bit signal of the counter and the sixth control signal ENW; and coding a fail column address in a redundancy coding block that received the coding signal ENW<n>, the first to fifth control signals, the first and second address signals ADD and ADDB, and the fail IO number FION<r>, and coding a fail IO bus.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.
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patent: 5905295 (1999-05-01), Prall et al.
patent: 6078534 (2000-06-01), Pfefferl et al.
patent: 6115286 (2000-09-01), Zettler
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patent: 9-128991 (1997-05-01), None
Kang Hee Bok
Kim Duck Ju
Kye Hun Woo
Lee Geun II
Park Je Hoon
Hynix / Semiconductor Inc.
Mai Son
Morgan & Lewis & Bockius, LLP
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