Low standby power with fast turn on for non-volatile memory devices
Granted: September 20, 2016
Patent Number:
9449655
Systems and methods for driving a non-volatile memory device in a standby operating condition are disclosed. A standby detection circuit detects whether the non-volatile memory system is in a standby condition. In response to determining that the non-volatile memory system is in a standby condition, a bias control circuit provides bias currents to drivers of the non-volatile memory system in a standby mode.
Autonomous control in a programmable system
Granted: September 20, 2016
Patent Number:
9448964
A programmable system includes a programmable analog system that is reconfigurable to perform various analog operations, and includes a programmable digital system that is reconfigurable to perform various digital operations. The programmable system also includes a microcontroller capable of reconfiguring and controlling the programmable analog system and the programmable digital system. The programmable digital system is configured to control the programmable analog system autonomously…
Semiconductor device sealed in a resin section and method for manufacturing the same
Granted: September 13, 2016
Patent Number:
9443827
A semiconductor device includes a first semiconductor chip having a pad electrode formed on an upper surface thereof; a resin section sealing the first semiconductor chip with the upper surface and a side surface of the first semiconductor chip being covered and a lower surface of the first semiconductor chip being exposed; a columnar electrode communicating between the upper surface and the lower surface of the resin section with the upper surface and the lower surface of the columnar…
Capacitive field sensor with sigma-delta modulator
Granted: September 13, 2016
Patent Number:
9442144
A capacitive sensor includes a switching capacitor circuit, a comparator, and a charge dissipation circuit. The switching capacitor circuit reciprocally couples a sensing capacitor in series with a modulation capacitor during a first switching phase and discharges the sensing capacitor during a second switching phase. The comparator is coupled to compare a voltage potential on the modulation capacitor to a reference and to generate a modulation signal in response. The charge dissipation…
Biasing circuit for level shifter with isolation
Granted: September 6, 2016
Patent Number:
9438240
A circuit includes a biasing circuit that includes a load circuit coupled to a first node. The biasing circuit can output a biasing signal on the first node. The biasing circuit also includes a timer component and a current source. An input of the timer component is coupled to receive an isolation signal. The current source is configured to inject current for a period of time into the load circuit in response to a transition of the ISO signal between a high voltage and a low voltage. The…
Semiconductor device and method for manufacturing thereof
Granted: September 6, 2016
Patent Number:
9437573
A semiconductor device which includes a first semiconductor chip 10, a first electrode 12 formed on the first semiconductor chip 10, a second semiconductor chip 20 to which the first semiconductor chip 10 is mounted, a second electrode 22 with a protrusion 24, which is formed on the second semiconductor chip 20, and a solder bump 14 which bonds the first electrode 12 and the second electrode 22 to cover at least a part of a side surface of the protrusion 24, and a method for…
Self-aligned trench isolation in integrated circuits
Granted: September 6, 2016
Patent Number:
9437470
A system and method for providing electrical isolation between closely spaced devices in a high density integrated circuit (IC) are disclosed herein. An integrated circuit (IC) comprising a substrate, a first device, a second device, and a trench in the substrate and a method of fabricating the same are also discussed. The trench is self-aligned between the first and second devices and comprises a first filled portion and a second filled portion. The first fined portion of the trench…
Touch sensor pattern
Granted: September 6, 2016
Patent Number:
9436339
A capacitive sensor array includes a second sensor element intersecting a first sensor element to form an intersection associated with a unit cell. The second sensor element includes, within the unit cell: a first primary trace crossing the unit cell and a second primary trace crossing the unit cell, a first secondary trace connecting the first primary trace and the second primary trace, and a first tertiary trace branching away from the first secondary trace between the first primary…
Integrating transistors with different poly-silicon heights on the same die
Granted: August 30, 2016
Patent Number:
9431503
An integrated circuit comprises a first poly-silicon region including a first poly-silicon layer, a second poly-silicon layer disposed over the first poly-silicon layer, a first poly-silicon finger associated with the first poly-silicon layer, and a second poly-silicon finger associated with the second poly-silicon layer. The first poly-silicon finger and the second poly-silicon finger are oriented in a substantially orthogonal manner relative to each other. The integrated circuit…
Nonvolatile charge trap memory device having a high dielectric constant blocking region
Granted: August 30, 2016
Patent Number:
9431549
An embodiment of a nonvolatile charge trap memory device is described. In one embodiment, the device comprises a channel comprising silicon overlying a surface on a substrate electrically connecting a first diffusion region and a second diffusion region of the memory device, and a gate stack intersecting and overlying at least a portion of the channel, the gate stack comprising a tunnel oxide abutting the channel, a split charge-trapping region abutting the tunnel oxide, and a…
Method to reduce program disturbs in non-volatile memory cells
Granted: August 30, 2016
Patent Number:
9431124
A non-volatile memory and methods of operating the same to reduce disturbs is provided. In one embodiment, the method includes coupling a first positive high voltage to a first global wordline in a first row of an array of memory cells, and coupling a second negative high voltage (VNEG) to a first bitline in a first column of the array to apply a bias to a non-volatile memory transistor in a selected memory cell to program the selected memory cell. A margin voltage having a magnitude…
Parallel bitline nonvolatile memory employing channel-based processing technology
Granted: August 30, 2016
Patent Number:
9431109
Various aspects provide for a new combination of non-volatile memory architecture and memory processing technology. A memory cell has a gate node, a source node and a drain node. The gate node is connected to a wordline of the memory, the source node is connected to a local source line of the memory, and the drain node is connected to a local data line of the memory. A channel-based processing component programs the memory cell and inhibits programming of a second memory cell on the…
Memory program upon system failure
Granted: August 30, 2016
Patent Number:
9430314
A system and method for programming a memory device with debug data upon a system failure is disclosed herein. For example, the system can include a timer device, a buffer, a register, and a memory device. The buffer can be configured to receive debug data. The register can be configured to receive memory address information. Also, the memory device can be configured to store the debug data from the buffer at a memory address corresponding to the memory address information when a timer…
Low thermal design for DC-DC converter
Granted: August 23, 2016
Patent Number:
9425691
A DC-DC converter includes an input terminal Pin receiving an voltage input, switching circuits connected in parallel between the input terminal Pin and ground, an output terminal Pout from which converted voltage is output, and a controller that turns the switching circuits on in a predetermined cycle by inputting, into each of the switching circuits, a control signal that turns the switching circuits on individually.
Electrically programmable and eraseable memory device
Granted: August 23, 2016
Patent Number:
9425325
The present claimed subject matter is directed to memory device that includes substrate, a tunneling layer over the substrate, a floating gate over the tunneling layer, a dielectric over the floating gate and including silicon oxynitride, and a control gate over the dielectric.
Structures and methods for stack type semiconductor packaging
Granted: August 16, 2016
Patent Number:
9418940
Methods and structures for stack type semiconductor packaging are disclosed. In one embodiment, a semiconductor device includes a semiconductor chip mounted onto a substrate, a first resin molding portion formed on the substrate for sealing the semiconductor chip, and a through metal mounted on the substrate so as to pierce the first resin molding portion around the semiconductor chip. The semiconductor device further comprises an upper metal electrically coupled with the through metal…
Edge rounded field effect transistors and methods of manufacturing
Granted: August 9, 2016
Patent Number:
9412598
Embodiments of the present technology are directed toward gate sidewall engineering of field effect transistors. The techniques include formation of a blocking dielectric region and nitridation of a surface thereof. After nitridation of the blocking dielectric region, a gate region is formed thereon and the sidewalls of the gate region are oxidized to round off gate sharp corners and reduce the electrical field at the gate corners.
Clock data recovery circuit and clock data recovery method
Granted: August 9, 2016
Patent Number:
9411594
A processor includes: an arithmetic unit configured to execute instructions; an instruction decode part configured to decode the instructions executed in the arithmetic unit and to output opcodes; and an interrupt register configured to receive interrupt signals, wherein the instruction decode part includes an instruction code map that stores the opcodes in correspondence to instructions and outputs the opcodes in accordance with the instructions inputted, and the instruction code map…
Oxide formation in a plasma process
Granted: August 2, 2016
Patent Number:
9406574
A method of making a semiconductor structure is provided. The method includes forming a tunneling layer over a channel connecting a source and a drain formed in a surface of a substrate, forming a charge storage layer overlying the tunneling layer, and forming a blocking structure on the charge storage layer by plasma oxidation. A thickness of the charge storage layer is reduced through oxidation of a portion of the charge storage layer during the formation of the blocking structure.…
Reducing power consumption in a liquid crystal display
Granted: August 2, 2016
Patent Number:
9407257
Embodiments of the invention relate to a method and apparatus to reduce power consumption in a passive matrix LCD driver circuit by using a plurality of drive buffers and active power management of sub-blocks in the passive matrix LCD drive circuit. Each drive buffer may operate in a first phase, which may include a high-drive mode to drive an LCD voltage to a threshold voltage level and a low-drive mode to modify the LCD voltage to approximate an input voltage of the drive buffer, and…
