Apparatuses and methods for targeted refreshing of memory

• US 10,147,472 B2
• Filed: 07/21/2017
• Issued: 12/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
• Inventors: Jones, William F., Wright, Jeffrey P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho, Hoai V
• Application Number:
  US15/656,084
• Publication Number:
  US 20170323675A1
• Time in Patent Office: 501 Days
• Field of Search: 365222
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/406 Management or control of the refreshing or charge-regeneration cycles
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/40611 External triggering or timing of internal or partially internal refresh operations, e.g. auto-refresh or CAS-before-RAS triggered refresh
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/40622 Partial refresh of memory arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/4087 Address decoders, e.g. bit - or word line decoders; Multiple line decoders
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 17/16 using electrically-fusible links
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 17/18 Auxiliary circuits, e.g. for writing into memory
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 2211/4068 Voltage or leakage in refresh operations
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/783 with refresh of replacement cells, e.g. in DRAMs
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 8/10 Decoders

Abstract

Apparatuses and methods for targeted row refreshes are disclosed herein. In an example apparatus, a predecoder receives a target row address and determines whether a target row of memory associated with the target row address is a primary or a redundant row of memory. The predecoder is further configured to cause one or more rows of memory physically adjacent the primary row of memory to be refreshed if the primary row is the target row or one or more rows of memory physically adjacent the redundant row of memory to be refreshed if the redundant row of memory is the target row of memory.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining whether a primary row of memory has been repaired and determining if one or more rows adjacent the primary row of memory are enabled;

if the row of primary memory has not been repaired, refreshing the enabled ones of the one or more rows of memory physically adjacent the row of primary memory; and

if the row of primary memory has been repaired, refreshing the enabled ones of the one or more rows physically adjacent a row of redundant memory associated with the primary row of memory.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said refreshing one or more rows of memory physically adjacent the row of redundant memory associated with the row of primary memory comprises:

refreshing a boundary row of primary memory.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said refreshing one or more rows of memory physically adjacent the row of redundant memory associated with the row of primary memory comprises:

refreshing a row of memory physically adjacent the row of redundant memory if enabled.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said refreshing one or more rows of memory physically adjacent the row of redundant memory associated with the row of primary memory comprises:

refreshing the row of redundant memory.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said refreshing one or more rows of memory physically adjacent the row of primary memory comprises:

determining whether one of the one or more rows of memory is an enabled boundary row of redundant memory; and

refreshing the boundary row of redundant memory if enabled.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the row of primary memory corresponds to a first memory section and the row of redundant memory corresponds to a second memory section.