HBM Interface Bypass Routing for Fault-Tolerant Semiconductor Memory
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor systems face challenges in managing failures within system and HBM interfaces, leading to potential errors and inefficiencies in the operation of stacked memory devices.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductor system design that includes a system chip, interposer, and base chip, which bypasses failed system and HBM interfaces to ensure uninterrupted operation by routing requests through adjacent functional interfaces and channels, thereby maintaining system functionality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If requests are transmitted through all system interfaces including failed ones, then the interface structure is simple and straightforward, but errors occur and operation continuity is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an interposer as an intermediary component between the system chip and base chip. The interposer includes multiple interfaces that can selectively receive requests from functional system interfaces and transmit them to appropriate HBM interfaces, thereby mediating the connection and enabling bypass of failed interfaces without requiring complex reconfiguration of the entire system
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic interface selection where the system can adaptively choose which interfaces to use based on their operational status. The interposer and memory controller dynamically determine whether to route requests through normal interfaces or bypass failed interfaces, allowing the system to maintain operation continuity by adjusting its interface usage in real-time
2Reliability
If failed interfaces are bypassed using adjacent functional interfaces, then operation continuity is maintained, but the data transfer path becomes more complex and longer
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the interface system into distinct functional units: system interfaces on the system chip, corresponding HBM interfaces on the base chip, and interposer interfaces in between. This segmentation allows independent control and routing of requests through different segments, enabling bypass of failed interfaces while maintaining organized data flow through the interposer's structured interface architecture
3Reliability
If all interfaces are used for request transmission, then the system structure remains simple, but failures in one interface can propagate errors to the memory device
Solution Approach 1:
The interposer serves as an error-isolating intermediary that receives requests from system interfaces and conditionally forwards them to HBM interfaces. The memory controller monitors interface status and controls the bypass logic, ensuring that errors in one interface are contained and do not propagate to the memory device through failed paths
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the system and base chips monitor the operational status of their interfaces and communicate this information to control the bypass logic. This feedback enables dynamic adjustment of request routing, allowing the system to respond to interface failures and activate bypass paths only when necessary
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductor system includes a system chip including a plurality of system interfaces, configured to output a plurality of requests as a plurality of transfer requests through the plurality of system interfaces, and configured to output the plurality of requests as the plurality of transfer requests by bypassing a system interface in which a fail occurred among the plurality of system interfaces, an interposer configured to output the plurality of transfer requests as a plurality of input requests through a plurality of wires, and a base chip including a plurality of high bandwidth memory (HBM) interfaces and configured to control operation of a stack memory device in response to receiving the plurality of input requests from the plurality of HBM interfaces and configured to receive the plurality of input requests by bypassing an HBM interface in which a fail occurred among the plurality of HBM interfaces.