Efficient verification for coarse/fine programming of non-volatile memory
First Claim
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1. An apparatus for programming non-volatile storage elements, comprising:
- a programming circuit in communication with said non-volatile storage elements;
a common control line connected to said non-volatile storage elements and in communication with said programming circuit; and
one or more verification selection circuits in communication with said non-volatile storage elements, said one or more verification selection circuits cause a first subset of said non-volatile storage elements connected to said common control line to be subjected to coarse verification concurrently while a second subset of said non-volatile storage elements connected to said common control line are subjected to fine verification.
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Abstract
A non-volatile memory device is programmed by first performing a coarse programming process and subsequently performing a fine programming process. The coarse/fine programming methodology is enhanced by using an efficient verification scheme that allows some non-volatile memory cells to be verified for the coarse programming process while other non-volatile memory cells are verified for the fine programming process. The fine programming process can be accomplished using current sinking, charge packet metering or other suitable means.
169 Citations
29 Claims
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1. An apparatus for programming non-volatile storage elements, comprising:
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a programming circuit in communication with said non-volatile storage elements; a common control line connected to said non-volatile storage elements and in communication with said programming circuit; and one or more verification selection circuits in communication with said non-volatile storage elements, said one or more verification selection circuits cause a first subset of said non-volatile storage elements connected to said common control line to be subjected to coarse verification concurrently while a second subset of said non-volatile storage elements connected to said common control line are subjected to fine verification. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for programming non-volatile storage elements, comprising:
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providing a common programming signal to said non-volatile storage elements, said step of providing is part of a programming process that includes a coarse programming phase and a fine programming phase such that one or more of said non-volatile storage elements are in said coarse programming phase while one or more of said non-volatile storage elements are in said fine programming phase, said step of providing includes providing said common programming signal to a word line common to at least a subset of said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said coarse programming phase and said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said fine programming phase; and performing coarse verification for said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said coarse programming phase while concurrently performing fine verification for said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said fine programming phase. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method for programming non-volatile storage elements, comprising:
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providing a common programming signal to said non-volatile storage elements, said non-volatile storage elements are connected to a common control line, said step of providing is part of a programming process that includes a coarse programming phase and a fine programming phase such that one or more of said non-volatile storage elements are in said coarse programming phase while one or more of said non-volatile storage elements are in said fine programming phase; and performing coarse verification for said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said coarse programming phase while concurrently performing fine verification for said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said fine programming phase.
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19. An apparatus for programming non-volatile storage elements, comprising:
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a programming circuit in communication with said non-volatile storage elements, said programming circuit programs said non-volatile storage elements together as part of a common coarse/fine programming process; and one or more verification selection circuits in communication with said non-volatile storage elements, said one or more verification selection circuits cause a first subset of said non-volatile storage elements to be subjected to coarse verification concurrently while a second subset of said non-volatile storage elements are subjected to fine verification.
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20. An apparatus for programming non-volatile storage elements, comprising:
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an array of non-volatile storage elements; a programming circuit in communication with said array of non-volatile storage elements, said programming circuit programs said array of non-volatile storage elements using a coarse/fine programming process; and one or more verification selection circuits in communication with said array of non-volatile storage elements, said one or more verification selection circuits cause a first subset of said array of non-volatile storage elements to be subjected to coarse verification concurrently while a second subset of said array of non-volatile storage elements are subjected to fine verification.
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21. A method for programming non-volatile storage elements, comprising:
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providing a programming signal to a set of non-volatile storage elements being programmed together as part of a common coarse/fine programming process that includes a coarse programming phase and a fine programming phase such that one or more of said non-volatile storage elements are in said coarse programming phase while one or more of said non-volatile storage elements are in said fine programming phase; and performing coarse verification for said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said coarse programming phase while concurrently performing fine verification for said one or more of said non-volatile storage elements that are in said fine programming phase. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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Specification