Memory and Storage

Overview
Memory Hierarchy
RAM
Memory Chip Organization
ROM
Flash Memory

Memory Hierarchy
Increasing performance
and
increasing cost

Slow and
inexpensive

Memory Hierarchy (contd)

Registers
top in the hierarchy
matched in speed to the CPU
but are large and consume significant power
number of registers in a processor are small
Secondary and off-line storage devices
at the bottom of the hierarchy
cost per stored bit small in terms of money
and power
but access time is very long compared to
registers

Main Memory
Main memory
a collection of storage locations,
each with a unique identifier called the address.

WordData are transferred to and from memory in groups of

bits called words.

The number of bits that can be stored in one CPU
register in a computer.

Main memory

Address Space
Although programmers use a name to identify a

word,
at the hardware level, each word is identified by
an address.
Address space The total number of uniquely identifiable locations in
memory.
For example:
a memory with 64KB and a word size of 1 byte has an
address space that range from 0 to 65535.

Memory units

Unit

-----------KB-kilobyte
MB-megabyte
GB-gigabyte
TB-terabyte
PB-petabyte
EB-exabyte

Exact Number of bytes

-----------------------210 bytes
220 bytes
230 bytes
240 bytes
250 bytes
260 bytes

Approximation

-----------103 bytes
106 bytes
109 bytes
1012 bytes
1015 bytes
1018 bytes

Address as Bit Pattern

Because computers operate by storing numbers

as bit patterns, the address itself is also

represented as a bit pattern.
If a computer has N words of memory, you need
an unsigned integer of size log2N bits to refer to
each memory location.

Note:

Memoryaddressesaredefinedusing
unsignedbinaryintegers.

Example 1
A computer has 32 MB (megabytes) of
memory. How many bits are needed to
address any single byte in memory?
Solution
The memory address space is 32 MB,
or 225 (25 x 220). This means you need
log2 225 or 25 bits, to address each
byte.

Example 2
A computer has 128 MB of memory.
Each word in this computer is 8 bytes.
How many bits are needed to address
any single word in memory?
Solution
The memory address space is 128
MB, which means 227. However,
each word is 8 (23) bytes, which
means that you have 224 words.
This means you need log2 224 or 24
bits, to address each word.

Connecting CPU and memory using

three buses

Data bus-

# of wires depends on the size of the word.

Address bus# of wires depends on the address space of
memory.

Control bus# of wires depends on the total number of control

commands a computer needs.

Random Access Memory(RAM)

The term random means any memory

location can be accessed in the same amount

of time regardless of its position in the
memory.
Volatile memory
Types of RAM:
SRAM
DRAM

Static RAM
Static RAM (SRAM) based on flip flops
Contents of each location persist as long as

power is applied.
Fast but relatively large
Consume a lot of power
Used for memory applications that are small
but fast

Dynamic RAM
Dynamic RAM (DRAM) employ capacitors
Capacitor stores electric charge whose level

represents a 1 or 0
Capacitors dissipate with time and hence the
charge must be restored frequently
DRAMs
smaller, slower than SRAMs
support low cost, low power and high density and
hence used in main memory

Memory Chip organization

RAM chip
A0 Am-1 : Address lines from 0 to m-1
CS : Chip Select (CS = 0, chip selected)
WR : ReadWrite (WR = 0, write operation)

RAM Grid

RAM Grid
During read operation:
Entire row is selected
It is fed into the column MUX
MUX selects a single bit for output

During write operation:

Single bit to be written is distributed by the

DEMUX to the target column

Row decoder selects the proper column to be
written

Read Only Memory(ROM)

Data stored in these chips is nonvolatile -- it

is not lost when power is turned off.

On turn on, the computer loads BIOS from
ROM
Data stored in these chips is either
unchangeable or requires a special operation
to change
Applications: Videogames, calculators,
microwave oven, etc

Read Only Memory(ROM) (contd)

Lets see the circuit for a ROM that stores four

four-bit words(0101, 1011, 1110, 0000)

PROM burner allows contents of the ROM to
be overwritten only once
EPROMs could be written several times
EEPROMs allow the content to be rewritten
electrically

Flash Memory
A section of memory cells can be erased in a

single step, or 'flash', thus the name

Nonvolatile memory
Flash memory is used for easy and fast
information storage in such devices as digital
cameras, mobile, video game consoles

References
Textbook: Computer Organization and

Architecture
Wiki pages
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_storage
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_random_ac

cess_memory
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/ram.htm
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/computer

-memory1.htm