High voltage boosted word line supply charge pump regulator for DRAM

• US 5,267,201 A
• Filed: 04/05/1991
• Issued: 11/30/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mosaid Technologies Incorporated (MOSAID Technologies Inc. (f/k/a Conversant Intellectual Property Management))
• Original Assignee: MOSAID Corporation Ltd (MOSAID Technologies Inc. (f/k/a Conversant Intellectual Property Management))
• Inventors: Lines, Valerie L., Gillingham, Peter B., Foss, Richard C., Harland, Robert F.
• Primary Examiner(s): LaRoche, Eugene R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): ZARABIAN, AMIR
• Application Number:
  US07/680,994
• Time in Patent Office: 970 Days
• Field of Search: 365/189.09, 365/149, 365/226, 365/203, 307/296.2
• US Class Current: 365/189.09
• CPC Class Codes: G05F 3/205 Substrate bias-voltage generators for static stores G11C5/146
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/4074 Power supply or voltage generation circuits, e.g. bias voltage generators, substrate voltage generators, back-up power, power control circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/4085 Word line control circuits, e.g. word line drivers, - boosters, - pull-up, - pull-down, - precharge
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/145 Applications of charge pumps; Boosted voltage circuits; Clamp circuits therefor G11C5/141 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/147 Voltage reference generators, voltage or current regulators; Internally lowered supply levels; Compensation for voltage drops G11C5/141 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 8/08 Word line control circuits, e.g. drivers, boosters, pull-up circuits, pull-down circuits, precharging circuits, for word lines
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/07 using capacitors charged and discharged alternately by semiconductor devices with control electrode , e.g. charge pumps

Abstract

A circuit for providing an output voltage for a DRAM word line which can be used to drive memory word lines which can be as high as 2V_dd. Transistors in a boosting circuit are fully switched, eliminating the reduction of the boosting voltage by V_tn as in the prior art. The boosting capacitors are charged by V_dd, thus eliminating drift tracking problems associated with clock boosting sources and V_dd. A regulator detects conduction current of a replica of a memory cell access transistor, shutting off the boosting circuit clock oscillator when the correct voltage to operate the access transistor has been reached.

Claims

1. A dynamic random access memory (DRAM) word line supply comprising:

(a) a voltage supply V_pp increasing from a voltage level insufficient to enable a memory cell access transistor for the word line toward a voltage level sufficient to enable said access transistor, for connection to the word line from time to time,

(b) the memory cell access transistor for connecting a memory cell capacitor to a bit line, having a gate connected to the word line,

(c) a sample transistor similar to the memory cell access transistor;

(d) means for applying the increasing voltage supply to the sample transistor for causing the sample transistor to conduct, under voltage supply conditions similar to those required by the memory cell access transistor,

(e) means for inhibiting increase of the voltage supply upon turn-on of the sample transistor,

whereby the voltage supply having the voltage level sufficient to turn-on the memory cell access transistor is provided for connection to the word line.

2. A word line supply as defined in claim 1 including means for measuring current in the sample transistor comprised of a current mirror, whereby a feedback voltage resulting from mirrored current drawn by the sample transistor is provided for inhibiting said increase of the voltage supply.

3. A word line supply as defined in claim 1 in which the voltage supply is comprised of a voltage pump and an oscillator for driving the voltage pump, said means for inhibiting being comprised of means for providing an inhibiting signal resulting from the drawing of current from said voltage supply by the sample transistor.

4. A word line supply as defined in claim 3 in which the means for providing an inhibiting signal is comprised of current mirror for reflecting current drawn by the sample transistor and providing an inhibiting voltage to said oscillator resulting therefrom.

5. A word line supply as defined in claim 1 further comprising:

(d) a D.C. voltage supply terminal,

(e) first and second capacitors, the first capacitor having one terminal connected to ground and its other terminal to an output terminal,

(f) first switching means for connecting the second capacitor alternately between the voltage supply terminal and ground and between the output terminal and the voltage supply terminal with one terminal of the capacitor being switched between the voltage supply terminal and the output terminal,

whereby a boosted voltage regulated to the D.C. voltage supply is provided at the output terminal of said increasing voltage supply.

6. A word line supply as defined in claim 4 in which the increasing voltage supply is comprised of:

(e) a D.C. voltage supply terminal,

(f) first and second capacitors, the first capacitor having one terminal connected to ground and its other terminal to an output terminal,

(g) first switching means for connecting the second capacitor alternately between the voltage supply terminal and ground and between the output terminal and the voltage supply terminal with one terminal of the capacitor being switched between the voltage supply terminal and the output terminal,

(h) an N-channel field effect transistor (FET) connected as a diode between the voltage supply terminal and the output supply terminal with gate and drain connected to the voltage supply terminal, for providing an initial unboosted voltage across said first capacitor of slightly less than the difference between the voltage supply and ground,

(i) a third capacitor, and a second switching means for connecting the third capacitor alternately between the voltage supply terminal and ground and between the output terminal and the voltage supply terminal with one terminal of the third capacitor being switched between the voltage supply terminal and the output terminal, and means for driving the first and second switching means to alternately switch the second and third capacitors between the voltage supply terminal and the output terminal in a non-overlapping manner,

(i) the first switching means being comprised of;

(j) a first pair of FETs, one being N-channel and one being P-channel, having their source and drain circuits connected in series between the voltage supply terminal and the output terminal, the source of the P-channel transistor being connected to the output terminal, the source of the N-channel transistor being connected to the voltage supply terminal,

(k) a second pair of FETs, one being P-channel and one being N-channel, having their source and drain circuits connected in series between the voltage supply terminal and ground, the source of the P-channel transistor being connected to the voltage supply terminal, the source of the N-channel transistor being connected to ground,

(l) the second capacitor being connected between the junctions of the first and second pairs of transistors,

(ii) and in which the second switching means being comprised of;

(m) a third pair of FETs, one being N-channel and one being P-channel, having their source and drain circuits connected in series between the voltage supply terminal and the output terminal, the source of the P-channel transistor being connected to the output terminal, the source of the N-channel transistor being connected to the voltage supply terminal, (n)1 a fourth pair of FETs, one being P-channel and one being N-channel, having their source and drain circuits connected in series between the voltage supply terminal and ground, the source of the P-channel transistor being connected to the voltage supply terminal, the source of the N-channel transistor being connected to ground,

(o) the third capacitor being connected between the junctions of the third and fourth pairs of transistors, and

(iii) substrates of the P-channel transistors having sources connected to the voltage supply terminal also being connected to the voltage supply terminal, substrates of the P-channel transistors having their sources connected to the output terminal also being connected to the output terminal, and substrates of the N-channel transistors being connected to a voltage terminal more negative than ground,

(p) said driving means is an oscillator providing both boosted and non-boosted, inverted and non-inverted non-overlapping clocks,

whereby the voltage supply terminal provides said increasing voltage supply.