Multimedia Three-Dimensional Memory (M3DM) System

• US 20070204122A1
• Filed: 04/18/2007
• Published: 08/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Guobiao Zhang
• Original Assignee: Guobiao Zhang
• Inventors: ZHANG, Guobiao
• Application Number:
  US11/736,757
• Publication Number:
  US 20070204122A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/163
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/62 Protecting access to data via a platform, e.g. using keys or access control rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/78 to assure secure storage of data address-based protection against unauthorised use of memory G06F12/14; record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings G06K19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 17/06 using diode elements G11C17/14 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/0688 Integrated circuits having a three-dimensional layout
• CPC Class Codes: H10B 20/00 Read-only memory [ROM] devices
• CPC Class Codes: H10B 20/20 Programmable ROM [PROM] devices comprising field-effect components H10B20/10 takes precedence

Abstract

Among all semiconductor memory technologies, three-dimensional memory (3D-M), particularly mask-programmable 3D-M (3D-MPM), has the largest storage capacity and is the only one that can store movies at a reasonable price. Accordingly, the present invention discloses a multimedia three-dimensional memory (M3DM).

Claims

1. A multimedia three-dimensional memory (M3DM), comprising:

a three-dimensional memory (3D-M) comprising a substrate and a plurality of vertically stacked memory levels;

wherein said 3D-M stores at least one movie at an average storage cost per movie comparable to DVD, and said movie has been recorded in said 3D-M before said 3D-M is distributed to a user.

2. The M3DM according to claim 1, wherein said 3D-M comprises a three-dimensional mask-programmable memory (3D-MPM).

3. The M3DM according to claim 1, wherein said average storage cost per movie is less than $0.70.

4. The M3DM according to claim 1, further comprising an access-control block for controlling access to said pre-recorded movie.

5. The M3DM according to claim 1, wherein a user initially obtains said 3D-M at a nominal price and later pays an access fee to access said pre-recorded movie.

6. The M3DM according to claim 5, wherein at least a portion of the hardware cost is recouped through said access fee.

7. The M3DM according to claim 1, further containing textual contents, audio contents, image contents and/or video clips.

8. A multimedia three-dimensional memory (M3DM) system, comprising:

a three-dimensional memory (3D-M) comprising a substrate and a plurality of vertically stacked memory levels, said 3D-M containing a plurality of pre-recorded multimedia contents (PMC);

an access-control block for controlling access to said PMC; and

a mobile device for playing back selected multimedia contents from said PMC;

wherein said PMC have been recorded in said 3D-M before said 3D-M is distributed to a user.

9. The M3DM system according to claim 8, wherein said 3D-M comprises a three-dimensional mask-programmable memory (3D-MPM) or a three-dimensional electrically-programmable memory (3D-EPM).

10. The M3DM system according to claim 8, wherein said mobile device is a cellular phone.

11. The M3DM system according to claim 8, wherein a user initially obtains said 3D-M at a nominal price and later pays an access fee to access selected contents.

12. The M3DM system according to claim 8, wherein said substrate further comprises said access-control block, a decoder and/or a digital-to-analog converter.

13. The M3DM system according to claim 8, further comprising a read-write memory.

14. The M3DM system according to claim 8, further containing broadcast contents, downloaded contents and/or advertisements.

15. The M3DM system according to claim 8, further containing pre-recorded textual contents, pre-recorded audio contents, pre-recorded image contents and/or pre-recorded video contents.

16. A narrow-line three-dimensional memory, comprising:

a substrate having a transistor-based memory, said transistor-based memory comprising a plurality of first address-selection lines in parallel; and

a diode-based memory stacked above and coupled to said substrate through a plurality of inter-level vias, said diode-based memory comprising a plurality of second address-selection lines in parallel;

wherein the minimum pitch of said second address-selection lines is smaller than said first address-selection lines, and the minimum feature-size of said diode-based memory is smaller than contemporary transistor-based memory.

17. The narrow-line three-dimensional memory according to claim 16, wherein at least one dimension of at least a portion of said inter-level vias is larger than the minimum half-pitch of said second address-selection lines.

18. The narrow-line three-dimensional memory according to claim 16, wherein said diode-based memory is a mask-programmable memory.

19. The narrow-line three-dimensional memory according to claim 18, wherein said mask-programmable memory does not comprise an antifuse layer.

20. The narrow-line three-dimensional memory according to claim 18, wherein at least one dimension of at least a portion of said inter-level vias is larger than the minimum half-pitch of said second address-selection lines.