Abstract:
Memory devices and methods of operating memory devices provide for using differing potentials during erase verify operations facilitate normal erase operations and subsequent erase check operations. Such apparatus and methods facilitate subsequent checks for data gain of erased memory cells using abbreviated procedures compared to normal erase operations.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/286,450 (allowed), filed Nov. 1, 2002 and titled “BACKGROUND BLOCK ERASE CHECK FOR FLASH MEMORIES,” which is commonly assigned and incorporated by reference in its entirety herein. This application further claims priority to Italian Patent Application Serial No. RM2001A000647, filed Nov. 2, 2001, entitled “Background Block Erase Check for Flash Memories.” 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD  
       [0002]     The present invention relates in general to erasing of flash memory devices, and in particular, to an on-chip method and apparatus for performing an erase check of each single block of the flash memory with a known margin against data gain, with minimal time loss.  
       BACKGROUND  
       [0003]     “Writing” or “erasing” a flash memory cell corresponds to shifting the threshold voltage (Vt) of the cell up or down in relation to the reading voltage applied to the gate of the cell. For example, using a read voltage of 5.0 V, the cell is considered erased if its Vt is 4.0 V or less (with a 1.0 V erase margin). The cell is considered written when its Vt is shifted to 6.0V or more (with a 1.0 V write margin). The margin is necessary because the cell may slightly change its Vt when it is cycled with multiple write/erase operations (assuming fixed length and numbers of write/erase pulses), or it may simply change over time during storage. The Vt increase of an erased cell is dubbed “data gain” while the Vt decrease of a written cell is dubbed “data loss.” Usually chips are erased before being shipped to the customer. A small data gain/data loss is typical for flash memory technology and it can be tolerated. Excessive data gain and data loss may, however, cause errors in reading the flash memory.  
         [0004]     Erasing a flash memory with a given margin against data gain requires a complex algorithm. The flash memory chips usually contain internal circuits to erase single blocks of memory cells, then the entire memory, with a specified erase margin. The full internal erase-erase check algorithm involves many steps such as Pre-program, Pre-program Verify, Erase Verify, Erase, Depletion check, Compaction, Erase Verify. The Erase Verify step checks that all cells are erased with a desired margin. If the Erase Verify does not give the expected result, the chip will cycle over some of the above steps. Consequently, the overall erase-erase check operation is quite long. For example, for a 32M flash, it may take up to 20 seconds on flash memory test equipment, which may be up to 40% of the total test time. Even more time is needed for larger memories.  
         [0005]     It is possible to erase the memory without making use of the internal algorithm, by using a simplified external erase algorithm with parameters specified by the flash test equipment. This is normally done by flash manufacturers at the time of the product final test. The external algorithm does not perform complex cycles, avoiding increased testing time. In most cases, the external algorithm used at final test is sufficient for a good erase. However, a few cells in some memory chips may be imperfectly erased and thus be more susceptible to data gain. With the external algorithm, it is not guaranteed that all of the chips will be erased with an adequate safety margin. Some chips, particularly those that have been in storage for a long period of time will be subject to data gain. The customer can follow three possible strategies to write data into flash memories on the production line:  
         [0006]     1) The customer can assume that the flash memory chip is completely erased and proceed to write data into the memory without any prior check. In this case the customer does not spend time to perform erase checks but if the memory is not completely erased there can be errors in the data written or if the memory has no safe erase margins there may be future data corruption due to data gain or disturbance.  
         [0007]     2) The customer can perform a regular read of the entire block and see if it is erased before writing new data. This regular read is not a background operation, it can only be performed location by location. Furthermore, a regular read can only be performed at a fixed reference value (typically 5V) and no safety data retention margins are guaranteed. The customer spends time for this regular read and still risks future data corruption.  
         [0008]     3) The customer can perform a regular erase before writing. In this case, the customer can be sure that the block is erased with safe margins but this is a time consuming operation that has a cost. It would thus be desirable to provide a more efficient method of ensuring that flash memory are completely erased to adequate safety margins before they are installed by customers. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a memory circuit coupled to a processor and a voltage supply according to an embodiment of the invention.  
         [0010]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of an erase check circuit for a flash memory according to an embodiment of the invention.  
         [0011]      FIG. 3  is a flow diagram of an erase check routine according to an embodiment of the invention from the standpoint of a user or external device.  
         [0012]      FIG. 4  is a flow diagram of an erase check routine according to an embodiment of the invention from an internal standpoint. 
     
    
       [0013]     Although, various embodiments have been illustrated using particular electronic components it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that other circuit elements could be implemented and that the present invention is not limited to the arrangement of circuit elements disclosed. Moreover, it will also be understood in the art that the present invention could be used in connection with non-volatile memory devices other than flash memory. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to an erase check circuit for flash memory.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0014]      FIG. 1  shows a computer system  100  including a memory circuit  110 , a power supply  130  and a processor  140 . Memory  110  includes a memory array  112  of non-volatile memory cells (which can be flash memory cells), a circuit for performing block erase check operations  200 , and a controller  120  that controls detailed operations of memory  110  such as the various individual steps necessary for carrying out writing, reading, and erasing operations. Memory  110  also includes an address decoder circuit  122  for decoding and selecting addresses provided by processor  140  to access appropriate memory cells in memory array  112 , and an I/O circuit  124  for providing bi-directional communications between processor  140  and memory circuit  110 .  
         [0015]     As with many flash memory operations, internal (on-chip) write and erase algorithms are started by commands given to the flash memory by the user or an external device such as processor  140 . In the present invention processor  140  may be part of a flash memory user system or may be included in flash memory test equipment. A schematic diagram of an on-chip circuit  200  for performing the block erase check operations according to an example of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 2 . Circuit  200  may include a command user interface or command interface (CUI)  202  that recognizes all flash memory commands including commands specific to the erase check operation of the present invention. CUI  202  may also provide various output signals for operation of components of the flash memory. CUI  202  may be activated by the write enable signal (WE_) on write enable line  204  and may receive commands on one or more input/output (I/O) lines  206  (shown in  FIG. 2  as 8 lines and designated DQ[7:0]). The commands on the I/O lines  206  may be codes such as commands from external testing equipment and may be latched into the memory by the WE_ signal, for example, when WE_ is low. The commands are interpreted by CUI  202  logic and executed by a Write State Machine (WSM)  208 , which may independently supervise execution of the entire write and erase algorithms.  
         [0016]     The present invention includes execution of one or more commands, referred to collectively as a “Block Erase Check.” The block erase check enables WSM  208  to internally start and independently execute the erase check or verify operation of all the locations of the selected block (sector) using proper safety margins.  
         [0017]      FIG. 3  shows a flow diagram of the operation of a basic block erase check routine evchk (Block Erase Check) from the standpoint of a user or external device, according to the present invention. The Block Erase Check command may be given in two cycles. In command setup block  304 , which follows start block  302 , a set-up command (code  20 ) is applied to the I/O lines  206  by an external device, such as the flash test equipment. In addition, the address (add) of the sector or block to be verified is applied to the chip memory address lines (not shown).  
         [0018]     The erase check routine starts once the second cycle, shown at block  306 , confirmation (command confirm) is given (code d 1 ) on the I/O lines  106  while the address (add) of the sector to be verified is applied to the address lines.  
         [0019]     Circuit  200  also may include one or more status indicators readable by external devices, such as status registers  214  and  216 . Status register  214  (SR 7 ), shown as a flip-flop, indicates at  308  when WSM  208  has completed scanning all the sector locations. When the output of status register  214  is zero, WSM  208  has completed address scanning. A second status register  216  (SR 5 ), which may also be a flip-flop, flags at  310  whether the Block Erase Check operation has been successfully completed. For example, if status register  216  is zero, it means that the Block Erase Check operation has been successful at  314 , while if status register  216  is one, it indicates an error at  312 . Both registers  214  and  216  may be read using the Output Enable OE_ signal, as shown in  FIG. 2 . The operation concludes at end evchk, block  316 .  
         [0020]     While there are a number of signals output by CUI  202 , to simplify the drawing, only two are illustrated in  FIG. 2  The first signal, Evchk, enables the Block Erase Check operation. The second signal, ersvfy, enables the normal Erase Verify operation.  
         [0021]     For manufacturing flexibility, flash memories are usually provided with fuses to trim the verify voltages during the testing phase. Analog block  212  is designed to adjust its output voltage HV according to the signals f_evfwl coming from a set of trimming fuses (not shown in the figure) for the normal Erase Verify step, and according to the signals f_erchk coming from another set of trimming fuses (not shown in the figure) for the Block Erase Check operation of the present invention. The HV signal is used to read the memory cells and is applied to the word line of the memory array (not illustrated). The HV trimmable value is typically in the range 3.25V-5V. The normal reading word line voltage is 5V.  
         [0022]     The erase margin or erase verify value used in the erase operation executed with the internal algorithm is typically about 3.75V. The Block Erase Check operation need not be performed using this value. If a tolerable data gain is 0.5 V, for example, the Block Erase Check command ( 20 ,d 1 ) may be performed using a typical HV voltage of 4.25V on the memory word lines. This will ensure that only cells in which there has been excessive data gain will fail an erase check.  
         [0023]     As noted above, WSM  208  manages all the basic operations involved in an erase or program algorithm. WSM  208  can perform or skip some of these basic operations according to a set of configuration fuses (not illustrated) that are provided for test flexibility.  
         [0024]     Signal coming from configuration fuses include: 
        fdo_initialppgm to allow the initial pre program operation     fdo_prepgm to allow pre program operation     fdo_prepgmvfy to allow pre program verify operation     fdo_softpgm to allow depletion check/recovery operation        
 
         [0029]     Usually all the above operations are enabled for the internal erase algorithm, but during the Block Erase Check they may all be disabled by the signal evchk through logic block  210 , which provides combinational logic to disable fdo_initialppgm, fdo_prepgm, fdo_prepgmvfy, fdo_softpgm when evchk is active. During Block Erase Check, only Erase and Erase Verify operations need be enabled for WSM  208 .  
         [0030]     In the standard internal erase algorithm, the signal touter, shown as one input to two input OR gate  218 , stops further operation of WSM  208  when a time-out condition has been reached or when the maximum erase pulse count has been reached. This is needed to prevent WSM  208  from locking in a loop in attempting to erase a failed cell. In Block Erase Check, timeout is given by default, since evchk forces timeouter, the output of OR gate  218  to “1”. WSM  208  will only execute one erase check and nothing else, flagging an error immediately if an erase check fails.  
         [0031]     A flow diagram showing the operation of WSM  208  in performing the Block Erase Check from an internal standpoint is shown in  FIG. 4 . When the Block Erase Check command is recognized, operation begins at  402 . At  404  the algo_on signal is set to “1” and the error flag wsm_error is initialized to “0.” Blocks  406  and  408  show initializing of word line counter (wl) and column counter (col) (inside WSM  208 ) to “0.” The memory location at address (wl, col) is erase verified at  414 . If the result of the check operation is OK, the column and word line counters are incremented (incr col and incr wl) at  410  and  412 , respectively. Assuming no errors, incrementing continues until the maximum (max col and max wl) values are reached at  416  and  418 . Then, at  422  the algo_on signal is set to “0” to flag that the operation is completed. The first time an erase check operation fails, the signal wsm_error is set to “1” at  420  and the algorithm is immediately stopped, setting algo_on to “0” at  422 . The operation concludes at end evchk, block  424 .  
       CONCLUSION  
       [0032]     A flash memory erase check circuit is disclosed. One embodiment includes an on-chip circuit that checks that the flash memory chip has been and continues to be thoroughly erased, even after data gain may have resulted, for example, from a long period of storage. The circuit may carry out the erase check operation in response to a single off-chip command. Another embodiment includes a method for performing the on-chip erase check. Embodiments of the present invention are fast, because unnecessary interactions between controller and memory are avoided. The present invention further provides safe erase checking, because the voltage used in the Erase Block Check insures an adequate margin versus further data gain. In another aspect the present invention may advantageously work in the background, because it is internally executed by a state machine upon receiving an external command from test equipment.  
         [0033]     Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that any arrangement, which is calculated to achieve the same purpose, may be substituted for the specific embodiment shown. This application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the present invention. Therefore, it is manifestly intended that this invention be limited only by the claims and the equivalents thereof.