METHOD FOR ADAPTIVE SETTING OF STATE VOLTAGE LEVELS IN NON-VOLATILE MEMORY
First Claim
1. A method for configuring a memory device, comprising:
- measuring respective threshold voltage distributions for respective sets of non-volatile storage elements in the memory device, the non-volatile storage elements being multi-level storage elements;
determining a respective set of voltages for each respective set of non-volatile storage elements based on the respective threshold voltage distribution, the respective set of voltages is customized for the respective set of non-volatile storage elements;
storing, in a non-volatile storage location, each set of voltages; and
after the storing, obtaining at least one of the respective sets of voltages from the non-volatile storage location, and performing a write operation involving at least one of the respective sets of non-volatile storage elements using the at least one of the respective sets of voltages.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method in which non-volatile memory device is accessed using voltages which are customized to the device, and/or to portions of the device, such as blocks or word lines of non-volatile storage elements. The accessing can include programming, verifying or reading. By customizing the voltages, performance can be optimized, including addressing changes in threshold voltage which are caused by program disturb. In one approach, different sets of storage elements in a memory device are programmed with random test data. A threshold voltage distribution is determined for the different sets of storage elements. A set of voltages is determined based on the threshold voltage distribution, and stored in a non-volatile storage location for subsequent use in accessing the different sets of storage elements. The set of voltages may be determined at the time of manufacture for subsequent use in accessing data by the end user.
47 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A method for configuring a memory device, comprising:
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measuring respective threshold voltage distributions for respective sets of non-volatile storage elements in the memory device, the non-volatile storage elements being multi-level storage elements; determining a respective set of voltages for each respective set of non-volatile storage elements based on the respective threshold voltage distribution, the respective set of voltages is customized for the respective set of non-volatile storage elements; storing, in a non-volatile storage location, each set of voltages; and after the storing, obtaining at least one of the respective sets of voltages from the non-volatile storage location, and performing a write operation involving at least one of the respective sets of non-volatile storage elements using the at least one of the respective sets of voltages. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for configuring a memory device, comprising:
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measuring respective threshold voltage distributions for respective sets of non-volatile storage elements in the memory device, the non-volatile storage elements being multi-level storage elements, the measuring includes writing data to the respective sets of non-volatile storage elements; determining a respective set of voltages for each respective set of non-volatile storage elements based on the respective threshold voltage distribution, the respective set of voltages is customized for the respective set of non-volatile storage elements; storing, in a non-volatile storage location, each set of voltages; and after the storing, obtaining at least one of the respective sets of voltages from the non-volatile storage location, and accessing at least one of the respective sets of non-volatile storage elements using the at least one of the respective sets of voltages. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A method for configuring a plurality of separate memory devices, comprising:
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for each respective memory device;
(a) measuring one or more respective threshold voltage distributions for one or more respective sets of non-volatile storage elements in the memory device, the non-volatile storage elements being multi-level storage elements;
(b) determining a respective set of voltages for each respective set of non-volatile storage elements based on the respective threshold voltage distribution;
(c) storing the respective set of voltages for each respective set of non-volatile storage elements in a corresponding respective non-volatile storage location, and (d) after the storing, obtaining at least one of the respective sets of voltages from the respective non-volatile storage location, and performing a write operation involving the one or more respective sets of non-volatile storage elements using the at least one of the respective sets of voltages;the respective sets of voltages are customized to each respective set of non-volatile storage elements, and vary among the plurality of separate memory devices. - View Dependent Claims (23)
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24. A method for configuring a plurality of separate memory devices, comprising:
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for each respective memory device;
(a) measuring one or more respective threshold voltage distributions for one or more respective sets of non-volatile storage elements in the memory device, the non-volatile storage elements being multi-level storage elements, the measuring includes writing data to the one or more respective sets of non-volatile storage elements;
(b) determining a respective set of voltages for each respective set of non-volatile storage elements based on the respective threshold voltage distribution;
(c) storing the respective set of voltages for each respective set of non-volatile storage elements in a respective non-volatile storage location, and (d) after the storing, obtaining at least one of the respective sets of voltages from the respective non-volatile storage location, and accessing the one or more respective sets of non-volatile storage elements using the at least one of the respective sets of voltages;the respective sets of voltages are customized to each respective set of non-volatile storage elements, and vary among the plurality of separate memory devices. - View Dependent Claims (25)
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Specification