# US 10,482,936 B2 · Signal training for prevention of metastability due to clocking indeterminacy

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- Number: US 10,482,936 B2
- Document ID: US10482936B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/423,852
- Filed: 2019-05-28
- Published: 2019-09-12
- Granted: 2019-11-19
- Earliest claimed: 2017-11-29
- Assignees: Micron Technology, Inc.
- Applicants: Micron Technology, Inc.
- Inventors: Daniel B. Penney
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10482936B2

## CPC

- G11C 7/222: {Clock generating, synchronizing or distributing circuits within memory device}
- G11C 7/1066: {Output synchronization}
- G11C 7/109: {Control signal input circuits}
- G11C 7/1093: {Input synchronization}
- G11C 7/1096: {Write circuits, e.g. I/O line write drivers}
- G11C 11/4072: Circuits for initialization, powering up or down, clearing memory or presetting
- G11C 11/4076: Timing circuits (for regeneration management G11C11/406)
- G11C 11/4096: Input/output [I/O] data management or control circuits, e.g. reading or writing circuits, I/O drivers or bit-line switches
- G11C 7/1063: {Control signal output circuits, e.g. status or busy flags, feedback command signals}
- G11C 2207/2254: Calibration
- G11C 2207/2272: Latency related aspects
- G11C: STATIC STORES (semiconductor memory devices H10B)

## Abstract

Methods and systems that may employ adjustments to the latencies in the input circuitry to reduce the latency during initialization period and to prevent undesired effects from metastability are provided. Disclosed systems may employ adjustable delays during a signal training process to cause adjustments in the timing of the host that will reduce latencies during write cycles. Certain systems may further reduce latencies by employing input logic circuitry that produces a valid, consistent signal from the bidirectional connection, such as a gate, and preventing metastability in input circuitry altogether. Such circuitry allows bypassing of initialization periods to stabilize the input, and allows further reduction of the initialization.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A memory device comprising:
a delay element configured to receive a command signal;
a latch configured to receive the command signal from the delay element and to output the command signal based on a clock signal, wherein the delay element is configured to match a latency of the command signal to a latency of the clock signal;
a command decoder configured to receive the command signal, wherein the command decoder is configured to provide a write command signal when the received command signal comprises a write operation; and
circuitry configured to receive the write command signal and a data strobe signal, and to output an internal write control signal.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, wherein the circuitry comprises a latch.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, wherein the circuitry comprises a gate.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The memory device of claim 3, wherein the gate comprises an AND gate.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, comprising:
a strobe comparator configured to receive a differential strobe signal and to provide the data strobe signal to the circuitry.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, comprising:
a second delay element configured to provide that data strobe signal to the circuitry.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, comprising:
a clock comparator configured to receive a differential clock signal and to provide the clock signal to the latch.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, comprising counter circuitry configured to receive the write command signal and the internal write control signal, and to provide a write end command signal.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, wherein the data strobe signal comprises a double-data rate data strobe signal.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The memory device of claim 1, wherein the memory device comprises a DDR5 SDRAM memory device.

### Claim 11

A memory device comprising:
a command decoder configured to receive a command and address signal and to provide a write command;
circuitry configured to receive a data strobe signal and the write command, and to provide a gated data strobe signal, wherein the gated data strobe signal comprises a fixed voltage signal when the data strobe signal is not driven; and
counting circuitry configured to receive the gated data strobe signal and to provide a write end command to the circuitry.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The memory device of claim 11, wherein the command and address signal is configured to cause the memory device to operate in a signal training mode that causes a host device, external to the memory device, to advance a transmission of the data strobe signal.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The memory device of claim 12, comprising a first delay element configured to delay the received command and address signal while the memory device operates in the signal training mode.

### Claim 14 (depends on 11)

The memory device of claim 11, wherein the counting circuitry comprises a 4-bit mode and a 8-bit mode.

### Claim 15 (depends on 11)

The memory device of claim 11, wherein the counting circuitry comprises a plurality of flip-flops arranged in a cascade.

### Claim 16 (depends on 11)

The memory device of claim 11, comprising a cyclic-redundancy check (CRC) circuitry.

### Claim 17 (depends on 11)

The memory device of claim 11, wherein the circuitry comprises:
latch circuitry that receives the data strobe signal, the write command, and the write end command, and provides a gate enable signal; and
a gate configured to receive the data strobe signal and the gate enable signal, and to provide the gated data strobe signal.

### Claim 18 (depends on 11)

The memory device of claim 11, wherein the memory device comprises a DDR5 SDRAM device.

### Claim 19

A method to prevent metastability in a memory device, comprising:
performing a signal training routine, the method comprising:
receiving an instruction signal comprising a write operation from a host device;
decoding the write operation to create a write command in a decoder of the memory device;
receiving a data strobe signal from the host device; and
advancing a feedback of the training routine to the host device in response to the data strobe signal to cause the host device to delay the data strobe signal.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The method of claim 19, further comprising:
receiving data from the host device during a write instruction, the method comprising:
receiving a second instruction signal comprising the write operation from the host device;
decoding the write operation to create a write command in the decoder;
during a initialization period of the write operation, providing the write command to gating circuitry configured to receive the data strobe signal; and
gating, in the gating circuitry, the received data strobe signal based using the write command.

### Claim 21 (depends on 19)

The method of claim 19, wherein the memory device comprises a DDR5 SDRAM device, and wherein the initialization period comprises a write leveling initialization period.

### Claim 22 (depends on 19)

The method of claim 19, comprising during the signal routine, adjusting a delay element configured to delay the instruction signal based on a skew between the instruction signal and a clock signal received in the memory device.