Voltage Control Circuit for Memory Leakage Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current memory systems face challenges in reducing leakage in volatile memories due to repeated access, as existing approaches to mitigate leakage through voltage adjustments often result in increased leakage in other aspects, such as access devices connected to the word line.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves a voltage control circuit that selectively adjusts the deactivation voltage of a target row's word line to a less negative voltage while maintaining more negative deactivation voltages for adjacent rows, reducing data degradation and current leakage by alternating the coupling of word line drivers to busses and providing specific voltages (VNWLD and VNWLA) to each bus.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the deactivation voltage is made more negative to reduce leakage during repeated accesses, then memory cell leakage is reduced, but access device leakage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different deactivation voltages to different word lines based on their access patterns. Specifically, word lines with repeated accesses receive a first deactivation voltage (less negative) while word lines with single accesses receive a second deactivation voltage (more negative). This local differentiation allows the system to optimize leakage reduction for repeatedly accessed rows without penalizing access devices connected to other word lines.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the deactivation voltage based on the access history and pattern of each word line. The voltage control circuit monitors which word lines are repeatedly accessed and adapts the deactivation voltage accordingly. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to respond to changing access patterns and optimize leakage performance in real-time.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the voltage swing is decreased to reduce leakage, then memory cell leakage is reduced, but leakage in access devices increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of applying a uniform voltage swing reduction across all word lines, the patent selectively applies smaller voltage swings only to word lines that are repeatedly accessed. The voltage control circuit identifies these specific word lines and applies a first deactivation voltage that creates a smaller voltage swing, while other word lines receive the full voltage swing. This localized approach reduces memory cell leakage without compromising access device performance.
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatuses and methods for adjusting deactivation voltages are described herein. An example apparatus may include a voltage control circuit. The voltage control circuit may be configured to receive an address and to adjust a deactivation voltage of an access line associated with a target group of memory cells from a first voltage to a second voltage based, at least in part, on the address. In some examples, the first voltage may be lower than the second voltage.