SEMICONDUCTOR MEMORY DEVICE AND METHOD OF CHECKING OPERATION STATE THEREOF

• US 20160224413A1
• Filed: 07/06/2015
• Published: 08/04/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: SK Hynix Inc.
• Original Assignee: SK Hynix Inc.
• Inventors: KWON, Yong Hyun, PARK, Won Sun
• Application Number:
  US14/792,261
• Publication Number:
  US 20160224413A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0727 in a storage system, e.g. in a DASD or network based storage system drivers for digital recording or reproducing units G06F3/06; circuits for error detection or correction within digital recording or reproducing units G11B20/18; for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS], H04L67/1097
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1008 in individual solid state devices G06F11/1004 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3037 where the computing system component is a memory, e.g. virtual memory, cache accessing, addressing or allocating within memory systems or architectures G06F12/00; checking stores for correct operation G11C29/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 2029/0409 Online test
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/08 Functional testing, e.g. testing during refresh, power-on self testing [POST] or distributed testing
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/52 Protection of memory contents; Detection of errors in memory contents

Abstract

Disclosed are a semiconductor memory device and a method of checking an operation state thereof. The semiconductor memory device includes: a micro configured to output a data generating code according to a state checking operation command; and a step code generating unit configured to generate a step code for an operation currently performed by a storage device according to the data generating code, and output ROM data including the step code, in which the micro generates a state code for the operation currently performed by the storage device and an operation code for a segmentalized step of the operation according to the ROM data.

Claims

1. A semiconductor memory device, comprising:

a micro configured to output a data generating code according to a state checking operation command; and

a step code generating unit configured to generate a step code for an operation currently performed by a storage device according to the data generating code, and output ROM data including the step code,

wherein the micro generates a state code for the operation currently performed by the storage device and an operation code for a segmentalized step of the operation according to the ROM data.

2. The semiconductor memory device of claim 1, wherein the step code generating unit continuously updates the step code according to the operation of the storage device.

3. The semiconductor memory device of claim 1, wherein the step code generating unit includes the step code, which has been generated when the data generating code is input, into the ROM data.

4. The semiconductor memory device of claim 1, wherein the micro includes:

a code generating unit configured to generate the data generating code in response to the state checking operation command;

a state code generating unit configured to generate the state code in response to the ROM data; and

an operation code generating unit configured to generate the operation code in response to the ROM data.

5. The semiconductor memory device of claim 4, wherein the code generating unit generates the data generating code while being synchronized to the state checking operation command.

6. The semiconductor memory device of claim 4, wherein the state code generating unit generates data for the operation currently performed by the storage device among the ROM data as the state code.

7. The semiconductor memory device of claim 4, wherein the operation code generating unit generates data for the segmentalized step of the operation currently performed by the storage device among the ROM data as the operation code.

8. The semiconductor memory device of claim 1, wherein the storage device includes a plurality of memory chips.

9. The semiconductor memory device of claim 8, wherein the memory chips are configured by a Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), a Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), a Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM), or a flash memory device including a control logic configured to output data for an operation state of the storage device in response to micro data output by the storage device.

10. The semiconductor memory device of claim 9, wherein the control logic includes:

a state code transmitting unit configured to output the state checking operation command in response to a state checking command, generate the state code as state code data, and load the generated state code data to a common bus;

an operation code transmitting unit configured to generate the operation code as operation code data, and load the generated operation code data to the common bus; and

an output data controller configured to receive the state code data and the operation code data through the common bus, and output the state code data or output the state code data and the operation code data according to a first state checking enable signal or a second state checking enable signal.

11. The semiconductor memory device of claim 10, wherein the state code data and the operation code data are loaded to allocated areas of the common bus, respectively.

12. The semiconductor memory device of claim 10, wherein when the first state checking enable signal is received, the output data controller outputs the state code data except for the operation code data, and when the second state checking enable signal is received, the output data controller outputs the state code data and the operation code data.

13. A method of checking an operation state of a semiconductor memory device, comprising:

setting a step code for each operation performed by a storage device;

generating the step code for one operation currently performed by the storage device according to a state checking command;

generating a state code for the one operation currently performed by the storage device and an operation code for a segmentalized step of the one operation according to the step code; and

outputting data including the operation code according to a state checking enable signal.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the state code is set to a code by which each of a program operation, an erase operation, and a read operation performed by the storage device is discriminated.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein each of a program operation, an erase operation, and a read operation performed by the storage device is segmentalized into a plurality of steps, and the operation code is set to a code by which each of the segmentalized steps is discriminated.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the program operation is segmentalized into a program set-up step, a program step, a verification step, and a discharge step.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the erase operation is segmentalized into an erase set-up step, an erase step, a verification step, and a discharge step.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the read operation is segmentalized into a read set-up step, a read step, an error correction checking step, and a discharge step.