Memory device and operating method thereof
AssigneeMacronix International Co., Ltd.
InventorsPo-Hao Tseng, Feng-Min Lee
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A memory device includes a first memory cell including channel, source and drain structures and a charge trap layer. When a first data bit has a first logic value and a voltage signal applied to the charge trap layer has a first voltage level, a current signal flowing through the channel structure has a first current level. When the first data bit has the first logic value and the voltage signal has a second voltage level, the current signal has a second current level. When the first data bit has a second logic value and the voltage signal has the first voltage level, the current signal has the second current level. When the first data bit has the second logic value and the voltage signal has the second voltage level, the current signal has the first current level.
Claims20
A memory device, comprising a first memory cell configured to store a first data bit, the first memory cell comprising:
- a channel structure;
- a source structure contacting a first side of the channel structure;
- a drain structure contacting a second side of the channel structure;
- and
- a charge trap layer contacting a third side of the channel structure,
- wherein when the first data bit has a first logic value and a voltage signal applied to the charge trap layer has a first voltage level, a current signal flowing through the channel structure has a first current level,
- when the first data bit has the first logic value and the voltage signal has a second voltage level different from the first voltage level, the current signal has a second current level different from the first current level,
- when the first data bit has a second logic value different from the first logic value and the voltage signal has the first voltage level, the current signal has the second current level, and
- when the first data bit has the second logic value and the voltage signal has the second voltage level, the current signal has the first current level.
An operating method of a memory device, comprising:
- storing a first data bit in a first memory cell;
- applying a voltage signal carrying a first search bit to the first memory cell;
- and
- comparing first data bit and the first search bit to generate a current signal flowing through the first memory cell,
- wherein when each of the first data bit and the first search bit has a first logic value, the current signal has a first current level,
- when the first data bit has the first logic value and the first search bit has a second logic value, the current signal has a second current level larger than the first current level,
- when the first data bit has the first logic value and the first search bit has a third logic value different from the second logic value, the current signal has the second current level, and
- a difference between the first logic value and the second logic value is equal to a difference between the third logic value and the first logic value.
An operating method of a memory device, comprising:
- setting a first threshold voltage of a first memory cell to store a first data bit in the first memory cell;
- applying a voltage signal carrying a first search bit to the first memory cell;
- and
- generating a current signal according to the first search bit and the first threshold voltage,
- wherein the first data bit has a first logic value when the first threshold voltage has a first threshold voltage level,
- the first data bit has a second logic value different from the first logic value when the first threshold voltage has a second threshold voltage level,
- when each of the first data bit and the first search bit has the first logic value, the current signal has a first current level,
- when the first data bit has the second logic value and the first search bit has the first logic value the current signal has a second current level larger than the first current level, and
- when the first threshold voltage has a third threshold voltage level between the first threshold voltage level and the second threshold voltage level, the current signal has the first current level.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.