Intel Corporation
High bandwidth destructive read embedded memory

Abstract:

Described are mechanisms and methods for amortizing the cost of address decode, row-decode and wordline firing across multiple read accesses (instead of just on one read access). Some or all memory locations that share a wordline (WL) may be read, by walking through column multiplexor addresses (instead of just reading out one column multiplexor address per WL fire or memory access). The mechanisms and methods disclosed herein may advantageously enable N distinct memory words to be read out if the array uses an N-to-1 column multiplexor. Since memories such as embedded DRAMs (eDRAMs) may undergo a destructive read, for a given WL fire, a design may be disposed to sense N distinct memory words and restore them in order.