Patent ID: 6856538

Claim:
A thin film magnetic memory device, comprising: a memory array having a plurality of magnetic memory cells arranged in a matrix, each of said magnetic memory cells having a magnetic element which is magnetized in a direction corresponding to storage data; a plurality of write selection lines provided corresponding to memory cell rows; a plurality of data lines provided corresponding to memory cell columns, a current being supplied to the data line corresponding to a selected column of said memory cell column in a direction corresponding to write data; and a plurality of write drive circuits provided corresponding to said plurality of write selection lines, for controlling selective current supply to said plurality of write selection lines according to a row selection result, wherein each of said write drive circuits includes a plurality of current drive sections, the write drive circuit corresponding to a selected row of said memory cell rows supplies a data write current to corresponding one of said write selection lines by using a first number of current drive sections as at least a part of said plurality of current drive sections, at least one of said write drive circuits corresponding to at least one adjacent row of said selected row supplies a magnetic-field canceling current smaller than said data write current to corresponding at least one of said write selection lines by using a part of said first number of current drive sections in a direction opposite to said data write current supplied to the write selection line corresponding to said selected row, and said data write current supplied in response to selection of said selected row and said magnetic-field canceling current supplied in response to selection of said adjacent row have a same direction on each of said write selection lines.