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US 4,399,519 AGranted
Dynamic monolithic memory
AssigneeHitachi, Ltd.
InventorsHiroo Masuda, Katsuhiro Shimohigashi
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Abstract
In a dynamic monolithic memory including a plurality of memory cells each of which comprises a capacitance and a switching field-effect transistor, the source and drain electrodes of the transistor are connected to a data line and the capacitance, respectively. Upon reading a memory cell, the transistor is switched on when difference between the data line voltage and the word line voltage applied to a gate electrode of the transistor exceeds a threshold voltage of the transistor.
Claims16
A dynamic monolithic memory comprising:
- a plurality of data lines;
- a plurality of word lines;
- a plurality of memory cells provided at the intersections between said data lines and word lines, each memory cell having a capacitance for storing a first or a second voltage and a field-effect transistor for connecting said capacitance to the corresponding data line, said field-effect transistor having a gate electrode connected to said corresponding word line, a first electrode connected to said corresponding data line and a second electrode connected to said capacitance;
- means for charging said data lines to a third predetermined voltage before reading the memory cell, said third voltage cooperating with said first and second voltages so that said first and second electrodes are operated during a memory reading operation as source and drain electrodes, respectively, regardless of whether said capacitance is storing said first or said second voltage;
- and
- a driver means for applying a predetermined selecting voltage to said word line, the difference between said selecting voltage and said third voltage exceeding a predetermined threshold value of said transistor.
3 more elements
A dynamic monolithic memory comprising:
- a plurality of data lines;
- a plurality of word lines;
- a plurality of memory cells provided at the intersections between said data lines and word lines, each memory cell having a capacitance for storing a first or a second voltage and a field-effect transistor for connecting said capacitance to the corresponding data line, said field-effect transistor having a gate electrode connected to said corresponding word line, a first electrode connected to said corresponding data line and a second electrode connected to said capacitance;
- means for charging said data lines to a third predetermined voltage before reading the memory cell, said third voltage cooperating with said first and second voltages so that said first and second electrodes can be operated as source and drain electrodes, respectively;
- and
- a driver means for applying a predetermined selecting voltage to said word line, the difference between said selecting voltage and said third voltage exceeding a predetermined threshold value of said transistor,
- wherein the dynamic monolithic memory is constructed to have a semiconductor substrate of a first conductivity type, and a well region of a second conductivity provided in said substrate, said memory cell being provided in said well region.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.