EEPROMS using carbon nanotubes for cell storage

• US 20050174842A1
• Filed: 02/08/2005
• Published: 08/11/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nantero Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Nantero Incorporated
• Inventors: Bertin, Claude L., Segal, Brent M., Rueckes, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 7,528,437 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 365/185.30
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 10/00 Nanotechnology for information processing, storage or transmission, e.g. quantum computing or single electron logic
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 13/025 using fullerenes, e.g. C60, or nanotubes, e.g. carbon or silicon nanotubes
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/0416 comprising cells containing a single floating gate transistor and no select transistor, e.g. UV EPROM
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 2213/17 Memory cell being a nanowire transistor
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 2213/79 Array wherein the access device being a transistor
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 23/00 Digital stores characterised by movement of mechanical parts to effect storage, e.g. using balls; Storage elements therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/0665 the shape of the body defining a nanostructure nanotechnology per se B82B
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/0673 oriented parallel to a substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/42324 Gate electrodes for transistors with a floating gate
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 10/481 characterised by the gate conductors
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 85/221 Carbon nanotubes
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 85/615 Polycyclic condensed aromatic hydrocarbons, e.g. anthracene
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 977/742 Carbon nanotubes, CNTs
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 977/943 Information storage or retrieval using nanostructure

Abstract

EEPROMS Using Carbon Nanotubes for Cell Storage. An electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM) cell includes cell selection circuitry and a storage cell for storing the informational state of the cell. The storage cell is an electro-mechanical data retention cell in which the physical positional state of a storage cell element represents the informational state of the cell. The storage cell element is a carbon nanotube switching element. The storage is writable with supply voltages used by said cell selection circuitry. The storage is writable and readable via said selection circuitry with write times and read times being within an order of magnitude. The write times and read times are substantially the same. The storage has no charge storage or no charge trapping.

Claims

1. An electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM) cell, comprising:

cell selection circuitry;

a storage cell for storing the informational state of the cell, wherein the storage includes a nanotube switch and wherein the state of the nanotube switch represents the informational state of the cell.

2. The EEPROM cell of claim 1 wherein the storage cell is an electromechanical data retention cell in which the physical positional state of a nanotube switch element represents the informational state of the cell.

3. The EEPROM cell of claim 2 wherein the storage cell element is a carbon nanotube switching element.

4. The EEPROM cell of claim 2 wherein the carbon nanotube switching element includes an element made of nanotube fabric.

5. The EEPROM cell of claim 4 wherein the nanotube fabric is made of single-walled carbon nanotubes.

6. The EEPROM cell of claim 1 wherein the storage is writable with supply voltages used by said cell selection circuitry.

7. The EEPROM cell of claim 1 wherein the storage is writable and readable via said selection circuitry with write times and read times being within an order of magnitude.

8. The EEPROM cell of claim 7 wherein the write times and read times are substantially the same.

9. The EEPROM cell of claim 1 wherein the storage has no charge storage or no charge trapping.