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US 6,639,826 B2Granted
Memory cell operation using ramped wordlines
AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated
InventorTheodore W. Houston
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The standby power consumption of storage or memory cells is improved by ramping the wordline voltage down at a rate slow enough to allow the addressed storage cell to reach a more stable voltage before reading. The voltage change applied to the wordline can be staged through a series of intermediate voltages.
Claims1
A method of operating a SRAM memory cell, comprising:
- setting an unaccessed WL voltage such that the SRAM memory cell is subject to upset upon a fast ramp of the WL voltage for access;
- and
- ramping the WL voltage slowly to a first voltage and then more rapidly to a second voltage wherein the first voltage is intermediate to the unaccessed WL voltage and the second voltage.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.