Memory Structures:

DRAM cells

Ramon Canal
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 3-Transistor DRAM Cell
BL 1 BL 2

WWL

RWL WWL

M3 RWL

M1 X X V DD 2 V T
M2
V DD
CS BL 1

BL 2 V DD 2 V T DV

No constraints on device ratios

Reads are non-destructive
Value stored at node X when writing a “1” = V WWL-VTn
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3T-DRAM — Layout
BL2 BL1 GND

RWL
M3

M2

WWL
M1

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 1-Transistor DRAM Cell
BL
WL Write 1 Read 1
WL

M1
X GND V DD 2 V T
CS
V DD
BL
V DD /2 V /2
sensing DD
CBL

Write: C S is charged or discharged by asserting WL and BL.

Read: Charge redistribution takes places between bit line and storage capacitance
CS
V = BL – V PRE = V BIT – V PRE
V ------------
C S + CBL

Voltage swing is small; typically around 250 mV.

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 DRAM Cell Observations
 1T DRAM requires a sense amplifier for each bit line, due to charge
redistribution read-out.

 DRAM memory cells are single ended in contrast to SRAM cells.

The read-out of the 1T DRAM cell is destructive; read and refresh

operations are necessary for correct operation.

 Unlike 3T cell, 1T cell requires presence of an extra capacitance that

must be explicitly included in the design.

 When writing a “1” into a DRAM cell, a threshold voltage is lost.

This charge loss can be circumvented by bootstrapping the word lines
to a higher value than VDD

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 Sense Amp Operation

V V(1)
BL

V PRE
D V(1)

V(0)
Sense amp activated t
Word line activated

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 1-T DRAM Cell
Capacitor

M 1 word
line
Metal word line
SiO2
Poly
n+ n+ Field Oxide Diffused
bit line
Inversion layer
Poly
induced by Polysilicon Polysilicon
plate bias gate plate

Cross-section Layout

Uses Polysilicon-Diffusion Capacitance

Expensive in Area
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SEM of poly-diffusion capacitor 1T-DRAM

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 Advanced 1T DRAM Cells
Word line
Cell plate Capacitor dielectric layer
Insulating Layer

Cell Plate Si

Transfer gate Isolation

Refilling Poly
Capacitor Insulator Storage electrode

Storage Node Poly

Si Substrate
2nd Field Oxide

Trench Cell Stacked-capacitor Cell

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 Novel cell designs
• 4T cell – “A Reusable Embedded DRAM Macrocell”, P.W.Diodato
J.T.Clemens W.W.Troutman W.S.Lindenberger, IEEE 1997 Custom
Integrated Circuits Conference

• 2T1D - “A Novel Dynamic Memory Cell With Internal Voltage Gain”,

Wing K. Luk and Robert H. Dennard, IEEE Journal of Solid-State
Circuits, v. 40, n. 4, April 2005

• 3T1D – “A 3-Transistor DRAM Cell with Gated Diode for Enhanced

Speed and Retention Time”, Wing K. Luk, Jin Cai, Robert H.
Dennard, Michael J. Immediato, Stephen V. Kosonocky, IEEE 2006
Symposium on VLSI Circuits

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 Novel cell designs
• 8T cell – “L. Chang, D. Fried and J. Hergenrother,
“Stable SRAM cell design for the 32 nm node and
beyond”, VLSI Technology, 2005. Digest of Technical
Papers. 2005 Symposium on, 2005, 128-129

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Introducing New Cells in CACTI
• CACTI is the most commonly used
memory structure characterization
programs.

• In this project, you will interact and modify

it to suit your needs.

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Introducing New Cells in CACTI
STEPS:
1. Download CACTI 6.5 http://www.hpl.hp.com/research/cacti/
2. Install it in your system and read the documentation
3. Chose a new cell design of the ones previously proposed in this
document (4T, 3T, 1T, 2T1D, 3T1D). Read about those cells,
justify the cell area assumptions and implement it in CACTI
(Watch out whether your cell is single or double endded!!)
4. Introduce the possibility of chosing the cell type in the command
line (either the available 6T SRAM cell) or your newly designed
cell.
5. Evaluate several configurations for delay (access time) and
power. 8KB-2MB caches, associativities from 1 to 8, and block
sizes from 32bytes to 128 bytes. (All variables increase in power
of 2 steps)

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Introducing New Cells in CACTI
Hand in (email) a PDF with:
1. Description of the cell implemented
2. Modifications made to CACTI
3. Evaluation of the configurations:
1. Effect of the associativity over power and delay
2. Effect of line-size over power and delay
3. Effect of size over power and delay

Hand in (email) the source CACTI code.

1. Be a nice programer and clearly mark your
modifications!

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