Testing impedance adjustment

• US 10,348,527 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2018
• Issued: 07/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
• Inventors: Tang, Qiang, Guo, Xiaojiang, Ha, Chang Wan
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Viet Q
• Application Number:
  US15/904,660
• Publication Number:
  US 20180191528A1
• Time in Patent Office: 498 Days
• Field of Search: 365200
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4086 Bus impedance matching, e.g. termination
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/025 in signal lines
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/028 with adaption or trimming of parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/50008 of impedance
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/04 Supports for storage elements , e.g. memory modules; Mounting or fixing of storage elements on such supports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/0278 Arrangements for impedance matching

Abstract

Methods of operating integrated circuit devices include generating a voltage level at a particular node in response to a first voltage level applied to a termination device and a second voltage level applied to a reference resistance; determining whether a plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy a criterion that each available resistance value is either less than a resistance value of the reference resistance, or each available resistance value is greater than the resistance value of the reference resistance; and, when the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion, determining whether a voltage level generated at the particular node for a particular available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is between a voltage level of a first reference voltage and a voltage level of a second reference voltage.

Claims

1. A method of operating an integrated circuit device, comprising:

generating a voltage level at a particular node of the integrated circuit device between a termination device of a signal driver circuit of the integrated circuit device and a reference resistance in response to a first voltage level applied to the termination device and a second voltage level applied to the reference resistance;

in response to generating the voltage level at the particular node, determining whether a plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy a criterion selected from a group consisting of each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is less than a resistance value of the reference resistance, and each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is greater than the resistance value of the reference resistance;

if the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device are determined to satisfy the criterion, determining whether a voltage level generated at the particular node in response to the first voltage level applied to the termination device and the second voltage level applied to the reference resistance while the termination device has a particular available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is between a voltage level of a first reference voltage and a voltage level of a second reference voltage;

wherein the voltage level of the first reference voltage is determined in response to the first voltage level and the second voltage level; and

wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is determined in response to the first voltage level, the second voltage level, and a defined tolerance for a desired resistance value of the termination device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the particular available resistance value is a highest available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be less than the reference resistance, and wherein the particular available resistance value is a lowest available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be greater than the reference resistance.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is closer to the first voltage level than the second voltage level when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be less than the reference resistance, and wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is closer to the second voltage level than the first voltage level when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be greater than the reference resistance.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining the voltage level of the first reference voltage to be halfway between the first voltage level and the second voltage level.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising determining the voltage level of the second reference voltage according to an equation {Vhigh+Vlow*(1+x)}/(2+x), wherein Vhigh is a highest voltage level selected from a group consisting of the first voltage level and the second voltage level, Vlow is a lowest voltage level selected from the group consisting of the first voltage level and the second voltage level, and x is a positive or negative value indicative of the defined tolerance for the desired resistance value of the termination device expressed as a percentage of the resistance value of the reference resistance.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the voltage level at the particular node comprises generating a respective voltage level at the particular node for a subset of available resistance values of the plurality of available resistance values.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein generating the respective voltage level at the particular node for the subset of available resistance values of the plurality of available resistance values comprises generating the respective voltage level at the particular node for each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is less than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated respective voltage level at the particular node for each available resistance value of the subset of available resistance values is between the first voltage level and the voltage level of the first reference voltage.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is greater than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated respective voltage level at the particular node for each available resistance value of the subset of available resistance values is between the second voltage level and the voltage level of the first reference voltage.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the voltage level at the particular node comprises generating the voltage level for only the particular resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values before determining whether the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is less than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated voltage level at the particular node for the particular resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is between the first voltage level and the voltage level of the first reference voltage when the particular resistance value is a highest resistance value of the plurality of resistance values, and wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is greater than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated voltage level at the particular node for the particular resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is between the first voltage level and the voltage level of the first reference voltage when the particular resistance value is a lowest resistance value of the plurality of resistance values.

12. A method of operating an integrated circuit device, comprising:

for at least one available resistance value of a plurality of available resistance values of a termination device of a signal driver circuit of the integrated circuit device, generating a respective voltage level at a particular node of the integrated circuit device between the termination device and a reference resistance in response to a first voltage level applied to the termination device and a second voltage level applied to the reference resistance;

for each at least one available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device, comparing its respective voltage level generated at the particular node to a voltage level of a first reference voltage;

determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy a criterion that either no available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device would generate its respective voltage level at the particular node to be less than a voltage level of a first reference voltage, or no available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device would generate its respective voltage level at the particular node to be greater than the voltage level of the first reference voltage;

when it is determined that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion, determining whether a particular available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values generates its respective voltage level at the particular node in response to the first voltage level applied to the termination device and the second voltage level applied to the reference resistance to be between a voltage level of the first reference voltage and a voltage level of a second reference voltage;

wherein the voltage level of the first reference voltage is between the first voltage level and the second voltage level;

wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is less than the voltage level of the first reference voltage when no available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device would generate its respective voltage level at the particular node to be greater than the voltage level of the first reference voltage; and

wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is greater than the voltage level of the first reference voltage when no available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device would generate its respective voltage level at the particular node to be less than the voltage level of the first reference voltage.

13. A method of operating an integrated circuit device, comprising:

generating a voltage level at a particular node of the integrated circuit device between a termination device of a signal driver circuit of the integrated circuit device and a reference resistance in response to a first voltage level applied to the termination device and a second voltage level applied to the reference resistance, wherein the first voltage level is higher than the second voltage level;

in response to generating the voltage level at the particular node, determining whether a plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy a criterion selected from a group consisting of each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is less than a resistance value of the reference resistance, and each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is greater than the resistance value of the reference resistance;

if the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device are determined to satisfy the criterion, determining whether a voltage level generated at the particular node in response to the first voltage level applied to the termination device and the second voltage level applied to the reference resistance while the termination device has a particular available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is between a voltage level of a first reference voltage and a voltage level of a second reference voltage;

wherein the voltage level of the first reference voltage is halfway between the first voltage level and the second voltage level;

wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is determined in response to the first voltage level, the second voltage level, and a defined tolerance for a desired resistance value of the termination device;

wherein the particular available resistance value is a highest available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be less than the reference resistance; and

wherein the particular available resistance value is a lowest available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be greater than the reference resistance.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is higher than the voltage level of the first reference voltage when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be less than the reference resistance, and wherein the voltage level of the second reference voltage is lower than the voltage level of the first reference voltage when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be greater than the reference resistance.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising determining the voltage level of the second reference voltage according to an equation {Vhigh+Vlow*(1+x)}/(2+x), wherein Vhigh is the first voltage level, Vlow is the second voltage level, x is negative value indicative of the defined tolerance for the desired resistance value of the termination device expressed as a percentage of the resistance value of the reference resistance when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be less than the reference resistance, and x is positive value indicative of the defined tolerance for the desired resistance value of the termination device expressed as a percentage of the resistance value of the reference resistance when each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is determined to be greater than the reference resistance.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein generating the respective voltage level at the particular node for the subset of available resistance values of the plurality of available resistance values comprises generating the respective voltage level at the particular node for each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is less than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated respective voltage level at the particular node for each available resistance value of the subset of available resistance values is higher than the voltage level of the first reference voltage.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is greater than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated respective voltage level at the particular node for each available resistance value of the subset of available resistance values is lower than the voltage level of the first reference voltage.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein generating the voltage level at the particular node comprises generating the voltage level for only the particular resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values before determining whether the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is less than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated voltage level at the particular node for the particular resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is higher than the voltage level of the first reference voltage when the particular resistance value is a highest resistance value of the plurality of resistance values, and wherein determining that the plurality of available resistance values of the termination device satisfy the criterion that each available resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is greater than the resistance value of the reference resistance comprises determining that the generated voltage level at the particular node for the particular resistance value of the plurality of available resistance values is lower than the voltage level of the first reference voltage when the particular resistance value is a lowest resistance value of the plurality of resistance values.