Patent ID: 6424562
Filing Date: 2002-07-23
Classification: G11C

Abstract:
A read/write architecture for a magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM), comprising:bit lines; word lines crossing over said bit lines; and a multiplicity of ferromagnetic memory elements disposed at crossover points of said word lines and said bit lines and forming rows and columns of a matrix, each of said ferromagnetic memory elements containing a layered sequence having a separating layer and two ferromagnetic layers separated by said separating layer, said ferromagnetic memory elements having a resistance perpendicular to said layer sequence in each case higher than that of said word lines and of said bit lines and depends on a magnetization state of said ferromagnetic layers, said ferromagnetic memory elements each being connected between one of said word lines and one of said bit lines; at least one of said ferromagnetic memory elements functioning as a reference memory element having a known magnetization state, connections between said reference memory element and each of said ferromagnetic memory elements defining taps of resistance bridges and a resistance ratio of each of said ferromagnetic memory elements to said reference memory element can be determined by said resistance bridges, each of said resistance bridges including said reference memory element and one of said ferromagnetic memory elements.