Apparatuses, systems, and methods for storing memory metadata

By incorporating additional column planes for metadata and dynamically forming virtual planes, the memory devices achieve efficient metadata storage with single-pass access and maintained memory array density, addressing the challenges of metadata storage in semiconductor memory devices.

WO2026064009A1PCT designated stage Publication Date: 2026-03-26MICRON TECHNOLOGY INC
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Patent Information

Authority / Receiving Office
WO · WO
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2025-07-30
Publication Date
2026-03-26

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing semiconductor memory devices face challenges in efficiently storing metadata while maintaining single-pass access and minimizing the loss of addressable memory space, leading to potential performance reductions.

Method used

The memory devices are configured with additional column planes for metadata storage, allowing single-pass retrieval of data, metadata, and ECC data, and can be selectively switched to operate without metadata storage, forming virtual planes to maintain data capacity.

Benefits of technology

This configuration enables efficient metadata storage with single-pass access, preserving memory array density and performance by dynamically adjusting column select signals to form virtual planes.

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Abstract

A bank of a memory device may be divided into column planes. Each column plane may be associated with column selects. In some examples, one or more physical column planes may be selectively configured to store metadata. When the memory device is configured not to store metadata, the column selects may be arranged into virtual column planes to allow data to be stored in physical column planes used for metadata. The physical column planes may be arranged into virtual planes to store the data. Different mapping of the virtual planes to the physical planes may be used.
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Citation Information

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