One-time programming multiple-level memory cells

• US 7,002,832 B2
• Filed: 10/27/2003
• Issued: 02/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: STMicroelectronics SA (STMicroelectronics NV)
• Original Assignee: STMicroelectronics SA (STMicroelectronics NV)
• Inventors: Wuidart, Luc, Bardouillet, Michel
• Primary Examiner(s): Phung, Anh
• Assistant Examiner(s): HUR, JUNG H
• Application Number:
  US10/694,317
• Publication Number:
  US 20040085806A1
• Time in Patent Office: 848 Days
• Field of Search: 365/100, 365/94, 365/96, 365/185.03, 365/71, 365/159, 365/148
• US Class Current: 365/100
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/5692 read-only digital stores using storage elements with more than two stable states
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 17/14 in which contents are determined by selectively establishing, breaking or modifying connecting links by permanently altering the state of coupling elements, e.g. PROM
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 17/165 Memory cells which are electrically programmed to cause a change in resistance, e.g. to permit multiple resistance steps to be programmed rather than conduct to or from non-conduct change of fuses and antifuses digital stores using resistance random access memory elements G11C13/0002

Abstract

A multiple-level memory cell including a storage element formed of several polysilicon resistors connected in series between two input/output terminals; and a load in series with said resistive element, the midpoint of this series connection forming a read terminal of the memory cell, and the respective junction points of said resistors of the storage element being accessible.

Claims

1. A multiple-level memory cell, comprising:

a storage element formed of several polysilicon resistors connected in series between two input/output terminals;

a load in series with said resistive element, the junction point thereof forming a read terminal of the memory cell, and the respective junctions between said resistors of the storage element being accessible; and

wherein at least certain points among said junctions of the storage element and the junction of this element with the load, are connectable, individually by a switch, either to one of said input/output terminals of the storage element, or to a terminal of application of a predetermined voltage, wherein individual programming of the resistors may be performed.

2. The cell of claim 1, wherein the ends of a same resistor are not connectable to the same terminal.

3. The cell of claim 1, wherein said switches comprise MOS transistors distributed half and half between P-channel transistors and N-channel transistors.

4. The cell of claim 1, wherein all polysilicon resistors have identical nominal values.

5. The cell of claim 1, wherein the number of possible programmable levels corresponds, at most, to the number of polysilicon resistors of the storage element plus one.

6. The memory cell of claim 1, wherein the programming is performed by imposing, in one or several of said polysilicon resistors of the storage element, a constraint current greater than a current for which the value of this resistance exhibits a maximum.

7. The cell of claim 6, wherein said constraint current is beyond a read operating current range of the storage element.

8. A circuit for reading from at least one memory cell of claim 1, comprising an assembly of comparators respectively receiving, on a first input, the voltage at the input/output terminals of the storage elements and, on a second input, a reference voltage chosen according to a level to be detected by the comparator from among the desired possible levels.

9. The circuit of claim 8, comprising one comparator less than there are levels desired to be distinguished in the memory cell, and an assembly of logic gates generating as many states as there are comparators, the binary word provided by said assembly representing the state of the memory cell.

10. The circuit of claim 8, comprising a number of comparators equal to twice the number of levels which are desired to be distinguished in the cell, the comparator outputs being combined two by two in the increasing order of the reference voltages that they receive, to detect one level per comparator pair.