Static information storage and retrieval – Read/write circuit – Having fuse element
Reexamination Certificate
2001-05-29
2002-09-10
Tran, M. (Department: 2818)
Static information storage and retrieval
Read/write circuit
Having fuse element
C365S063000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06449206
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a semiconductor circuit configuration. The semiconductor circuit configuration contains at least one first potential device for making available a first potential and at least one second potential device for making available a second potential. At least one programmable element having a first connecting terminal and a second connecting terminal is provided. The programmable element has an electrical state, in particular its ohmic resistance, able to be permanently varied by applying between the first connecting terminal and the second connecting terminal a potential difference having a value reaching a burning voltage predefined for the programmable element. A first electrical connecting device is connected in a conductive manner between the first connecting terminal of the programmable element and the first potential device. A second electrical connecting device is connected in a conductive manner between the second connecting terminal of the programmable element and the second potential device.
Semiconductor circuit configurations, in particular semiconductor modules, chips, integrated circuits, semiconductor memories or the like often have electrically programmable elements whose electrical properties can be varied permanently by applying to them a potential difference which exceeds a given burning voltage.
Such electrically programmable elements, which are also referred to as electrical fuses, are used for trimming and/or repair purposes in semiconductor circuit configurations when redundant repair circuits are used.
All these applications have in common the fact that the electrical parameters of the electrically programmable element are permanently changed on the basis of specific decision criteria by applying a corresponding voltage, that as a result, for example, specific additional component circuit configurations or even individual assemblies are switched on and off in a defined fashion. There is thus provision in an application, for example in semiconductor memories, that, for example, defective memory cells or memory locations are permanently switched off and permanently replaced by operationally capable standby regions.
In conventional semiconductor circuit configurations with corresponding, electrically programmable elements, the relatively high burning voltage which is necessary to program the electrically programmable elements and which lies far above the internal operating voltage of the semiconductor circuit configuration can be implemented only at relatively high cost in the vicinity of the semiconductor circuit configuration. Furthermore, in order to implement rapid programming with short programming times, a particularly highly charged voltage network is necessary, which would make additional capacitances for supporting and supplying the burning current necessary, which is a measure which decreases the area utilization rate in conventional circuit configurations.
In order to avoid these problems, it has been proposed in the prior art to carry out, an additional burning process even, in effect, after the production process for the semiconductor circuit configuration, in which burning process an appropriate burning voltage is made available from the outside for a brief time period, if appropriate by corresponding additional burning terminals.
One problem with this procedure is that there is no provision for conventional semiconductor circuit configurations to have an external and increased burning voltage applied to them, in particular during the additional, subsequent burning process. Various manufacturers even explicitly advise against subsequent application of high voltages within the scope of specific burning processes in order to avoid damage to other elements of the semiconductor circuit configuration which are not at all configured to receive increased burning voltages.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a semiconductor circuit configuration that overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art devices of this general type, in which electrically programmable elements which are provided in it can be programmed in a way which is particularly simple and reliable and which does not place stresses on the rest of the semiconductor circuit configuration.
With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a semiconductor circuit configuration. The semiconductor circuit configuration contains at least one first potential device for making available a first potential, at least one second potential device for making available a second potential, and at least one programmable element having a first connecting terminal and a second connecting terminal. The programmable element has an electrical state able to be permanently varied by applying between the first connecting terminal and the second connecting terminal a potential difference having a value reaching a burning voltage predefined for the programmable element. A first electrical connecting device is connected between the programmable element and the first potential device, the first electrical connecting device providing a conductive connection between the first connecting terminal of the programmable device and the first potential device. A second electrical connecting device is connected between the programmable element and the second potential device, the second electrical connecting device providing a conductive connection between the second connecting terminal of the programmable device and the second potential device. A circuit region and controllable switching devices are provided. The switches include a first switching device connected between the circuit region and the first connecting terminal and a second switching device connected between the circuit region and the second connecting terminal. The controllable switching devices disconnecting in a controllable manner an electrical state of the programmable element from the circuit region during a burning operation.
In the semiconductor circuit configuration of the generic type, in particular a semiconductor module, chip or the like, at least one first potential device is provided which is configured at least for making available a first potential, in particular for generally and/or externally supplying a voltage to the semiconductor circuit configuration. Furthermore, at least one second potential device is provided which is configured at least for making available a second potential, in particular for the general and/or negative bias voltage of at least one substrate region of the semiconductor circuit configuration. In addition, the semiconductor circuit configuration of the generic type has at least one programmable element which has at least a first and a second connecting terminal and which is configured in such a way that its electrical state, in particular its ohmic resistance, between the first and second connecting terminals can be varied permanently by applying a potential difference between the connecting terminals whose value at least reaches a burning voltage predefined for the programmable element.
The semiconductor circuit configuration according to the invention is defined by the fact that the first electrical connecting device is provided by which the first connecting terminal of the programmable element can be connected in a conductive fashion to the first potential device, and in that a second electrical connecting device is provided by which the second connecting terminal of the programmable element can be connected in a conductive fashion to the second potential device.
The semiconductor circuit configuration according to the invention thus makes it possible for potentials which have already been generated and are necessary for the basic operation of the semiconductor circuit configuration to be applied in each case to each of the two connecting regions of a programmable element. These measures obviate the need to provide an additional increased, ex
Kaiser Robert
Lindolf Jürgen
Schaffroth Thilo
Schamberger Florian
Schneider Helmut
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