Memory Systems and Block Copy Methods Thereof

• US 20150248328A1
• Filed: 04/24/2015
• Published: 09/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Park, Kitae, Han, Jinman, Yoon, Sangyong
• Granted Patent: US 9,280,420 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1008 in individual solid state devices G06F11/1004 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1068 in sector programmable memories, e.g. flash disk G06F11/1072 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1072 in multilevel memories
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/52 Protection of memory contents; Detection of errors in memory contents

Abstract

Methods of operating memory systems and nonvolatile memory devices include performing error checking and correction (ECC) operations on M pages of data read from a first “source” portion of M-bit nonvolatile memory cells within the nonvolatile memory device to thereby generate M pages of ECC-processed data, where M is a positive integer greater than two (2). A second “target” portion of M-bit nonvolatile memory cells within the nonvolatile memory device is then programmed with the M pages of ECC-processed data using an address-scrambled reprogramming technique, for example.

Claims

1. A method of operating a nonvolatile memory device including a plurality of first memory cells and a plurality of second memory cells, each of the plurality of first memory cells being configured to store N-bit data, each of the plurality of second memory cells being configured to store 1-bit data, N being an integer greater than two, the method comprising:

reading a first page of data from a first portion of the plurality of first memory cells;

performing an error checking and correction (ECC) operation on the first page of the data to thereby generate a first page of ECC-processed data;

programming the first page of ECC-processed data in the plurality of second memory cells;

reading the first page of ECC-processed data that is programmed in the plurality of second memory cells;

programming, in a second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data that is read from the plurality of second memory cells;

after the programming the first page of ECC-processed data in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, re-reading the first page of ECC-processed data that is programmed in the plurality of second memory cells; and

re-programming, in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data that is re-read from the plurality of second memory cells.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first portion of the plurality of first memory cells are connected to a first word line.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of second memory cells are connected to a second word line.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells are connected to a third word line.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein N is three.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein after the first page of ECC-processed data is read from the plurality of second memory cells, the ECC operation is not further performed on the first page of ECC-processed data until the first page of ECC-processed data is programmed in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein after the first page of ECC-processed data is re-read from the plurality of second memory cells, the ECC operation is not further performed on the first page of ECC-processed data until the first page of ECC-processed data is re-programmed in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein a first threshold voltage distribution corresponding to a first programming state that is resulted from the programming the first page of ECC-processed data is wider than a second threshold voltage distribution corresponding to the first programming state that is resulted from the re-programming the first page of ECC-processed data.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

after the re-programming the first page of ECC-processed, third-reading the first page of ECC-processed data that is programmed in the plurality of second memory cells; and

third-programming, in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data that is third-read from the plurality of second memory cells.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing, in a volatile memory buffer, the first page of ECC-processed data before the programming the first page of ECC-processed data in the plurality of second memory cells.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the programming the first page of ECC-processed data in the plurality of second memory cells is performed using a buffer program operation.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the nonvolatile memory device includes a three-dimensional memory array.

13. A method of operating a nonvolatile memory device including a plurality of first memory cells and a plurality of second memory cells, each of the plurality of first memory cells being configured to store 3-bit data, each of the plurality of second memory cells being configured to store 1-bit data, the method comprising:

reading a first page of data from a first portion of the plurality of first memory cells;

performing an error checking and correction (ECC) operation on the first page of the data to thereby generate a first page of ECC-processed data;

programming the first page of ECC-processed data in the plurality of second memory cells;

reading the first page of ECC-processed data, a second page of data and a third page of data that are programmed in the plurality of second memory cells;

programming, in a second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are read from the plurality of second memory cells;

after the programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, re-reading the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are programmed in the plurality of second memory cells; and

re-programming, in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are re-read from the plurality of second memory cells.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first page of ECC-process data is programmed in third memory cells that are connected to a first word line,

the second page of data is programmed in fourth memory cells that are connected to a second word line,

the third page of data is programmed in fifth memory cells that are connected to a third word line, and

the plurality of second memory cells include the third memory cells, the fourth memory cells and the fifth memory cells.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the re-programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data is performed in memory cells that are connected to a first word line and are included in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are read from the plurality of second memory cells are re-programmed concurrently in the first word line.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are read in the plurality of second memory cells are stored in a page buffer included in the nonvolatile memory device.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein a first threshold voltage distribution corresponding to a first programming state that is resulted from the programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data is different from a second threshold voltage distribution corresponding to the first programming state that is resulted from the re-programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data, and

the number of threshold voltage distributions that are resulted from the programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data is the same as the number of threshold voltage distributions that are resulted from the re-programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data.

19. The method of claim 13, further comprising storing, in a volatile memory buffer, the first page of ECC-processed data before the programming the first page of ECC-processed data in the plurality of second memory cells.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the first page of data and the second page of data are programmed in a first memory block of the plurality of second memory cells.

21. The method of claim 13, wherein each of the first page of data and the second page of data is a valid page.

22. The method of claim 13, wherein the nonvolatile memory device includes a three-dimensional memory array.

23. A memory system comprising:

a nonvolatile memory device including a plurality of first memory cells and a plurality of second memory cells, each of the plurality of first memory cells being configured to store N-bit data, each of the plurality of second memory cells being configured to store 1-bit data, N being an integer greater than two; and

a controller configured to perform an error checking and correction (ECC) operation on a first page of data that is read from a first portion of the plurality of first memory cells, configured to generate a first page of ECC-processed data, and configured to output the first page of ECC-processed data to the nonvolatile memory device,

wherein the nonvolatile memory device is configured to program the first page of ECC-processed data in the plurality of second memory cells,

the nonvolatile memory device is configured to read the first page of ECC-processed data that is programmed in the plurality of second memory cells,

the nonvolatile memory device is configured to program, in a second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data that is read from the plurality of second memory cells, and

the nonvolatile memory device is configured to re-program, in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data that is read from the plurality of second memory cells.

24. The memory system of claim 23, wherein the controller includes:

an ECC circuit configured to perform the ECC operation; and

a buffer memory having volatile memory cells therein.

25. The memory system of claim 23, wherein the first portion of the plurality of first memory cells are connected to a first word line,

the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells are connected to a second word line, and

the plurality of second memory cells are connected to a third word line.

26. The memory system of claim 23, wherein after the first page of ECC-processed data is read from the plurality of second memory cells, the ECC operation is not further performed on the first page of ECC-processed data until the first page of ECC-processed data is programmed in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells.

27. A memory system comprising:

a nonvolatile memory device including a plurality of first memory cells and a plurality of second memory cells, each of the plurality of first memory cells being configured to store 3-bit data, each of the plurality of second memory cells being configured to store 1-bit data; and

a controller configured to perform an error checking and correction (ECC) operation on a first page of data that is read from a first portion of the plurality of first memory cells, configured to generate a first page of ECC-processed data, and configured to output the first page of ECC-processed data to the nonvolatile memory device,

wherein the nonvolatile memory device is configured to program the first page of ECC-processed data in the plurality of second memory cells,

the nonvolatile memory device is configured to read the first page of ECC-processed data, a second page of data and a third page of data that are programmed in the plurality of second memory cells,

the nonvolatile memory device is configured to program, in a second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are read from the plurality of second memory cells, and

the nonvolatile memory device is configured to re-program, in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells, the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are read from the plurality of second memory cells.

28. The memory system of claim 27, wherein the first page of ECC-process data, the second page of data and the third page of data are programmed in memory cells that are connected to a first word line and are included in the second portion of the plurality of first memory cells.

29. The memory system of claim 27, wherein the nonvolatile memory device includes a page buffer configured to store the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data that are programmed in the plurality of second memory cells.

30. The memory system of claim 27, wherein a first threshold voltage distribution corresponding to a first programming state that is resulted from programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data is different from a second threshold voltage distribution corresponding to the first programming state that is resulted from re-programming the first page of ECC-processed data, the second page of data and the third page of data.