JP5514095B2 - Semiconductor memory device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a semiconductor memory device, and more particularly to an SRAM alternative memory that is compatible with a static random access memory (SRAM). More specifically, the present invention relates to a configuration for a specific mode entry of an SRAM alternative memory.

  In applications of portable devices, SRAM (Static Random Access Memory) is used as an internal memory for high speed operation. However, the SRAM has a memory cell composed of four transistors and two load elements, which occupies a large area, and it is difficult to realize a memory with a large storage capacity within a limited area. .

  Due to the high functionality of portable devices, it is necessary to process image data and audio data, and the amount of processed data becomes enormous, and a memory having a large storage capacity is required as a storage device of this portable device. When an SRAM is used, it is difficult to reduce the memory with a large storage capacity with a small occupation area, and it becomes impossible to satisfy the demand for reducing the size and weight of high-performance portable devices.

  A dynamic random access memory (DRAM) has an advantage that a memory cell is composed of one transistor and one capacitor, and the area occupied by the memory cell is smaller than that of an SRAM. . That is, the DRAM is suitable for constituting a memory having a small occupation area and a large storage capacity. However, since DRAM stores data in a capacitor, the stored data is lost due to a leak current. Therefore, it is necessary to periodically refresh the stored data. When this refresh is executed, an external device such as a processor cannot access the DRAM and enters a wait state, so that the processing efficiency of the system decreases.

  In addition, the DRAM is designated as a sleep mode during a standby time in a portable device and is held in a standby state. However, even in such a sleep mode, it is necessary to retain stored data, and it is necessary to periodically refresh. For this reason, the ultra-low standby current condition of μA order required by the specification or the like in the sleep mode cannot be satisfied.

  In order to increase a memory having a large storage capacity with a small occupied area, it is necessary to use a DRAM-based memory. However, when such a DRAM-based memory (hereinafter referred to as an SRAM alternative memory) is used, it is required to replace the memory without significantly changing the conventional system configuration. That is, pin compatibility is required. Here, the “memory” indicates a storage device connected to a device such as an external processor via a pin terminal.

  The SRAM operates statically according to an external control signal, unlike a clock synchronous memory that operates in synchronization with a clock signal such as a system clock. Accordingly, the SRAM alternative memory is also required to operate under the same operating conditions (signal timing) as the SRAM in order to prevent an increase in the load on the external processor.

  In particular, when various operation modes are designated in the SRAM alternative memory, it is necessary to set using a signal prepared in the conventional SRAM because of pin compatibility. In particular, when an operation mode not prepared in the conventional SRAM is specified, signals used in the SRAM are usually a chip enable signal CE, an output enable signal OE, and a write enable signal WE, and a specific operation mode. Complex signal timing relationships cannot be used for entry. In addition, when a specific operation mode is designated by a signal timing relationship different from the signal timing used in a normal SRAM, it is necessary to provide a new function in an external device such as a memory controller. Compatibility cannot be maintained, and the load on the external device increases.

  Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an SRAM alternative memory that is pin-compatible with SRAM.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor memory device capable of specifying an internal operation mode using a signal similar to that of an SRAM.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor memory device capable of designating a specific operation mode asynchronously with a clock signal without increasing the number of pin terminals.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor memory device including a circuit for setting a command entry mode for designating a specific operation mode using an interface compatible with SRAM.

The semiconductor memory device according to the present invention is a semiconductor memory device that is accessed according to a predetermined signal pattern input to a plurality of external signal terminals in a normal operation mode, and the plurality of external signal terminals are different from the predetermined signal pattern. in response to the input signal patterns to generate a signal to transition from the normal operation mode to the command mode, in the command mode, the first signal pattern input from the address and data terminals of the external signal terminals multiple A signal for setting the inside to a low power consumption state is generated by decoding, and a second signal pattern different from the first signal pattern inputted from the address and data terminals is decoded to make the semiconductor memory device in the command mode. motor for generating a signal to transition to the normal operation mode from the command standby state to accept commands And a control circuit.

Preferably, the mode control circuit includes, in addition to the command standby state, a power down mode for designating interruption of the supply of internal power, a wake up mode for completing the power down mode, a reset mode for setting the interior to an initial state, data Either the mode for designating the data holding area in the holding mode or the exit mode for transitioning from the command mode to the normal mode is activated.

  The specific mode is specified when an access sequence different from the access sequence performed in the normal operation mode is performed.

  By setting the internal state in accordance with the state of a specific external signal, the internal state can be set to a desired state using the signal of the conventional SRAM, and a semiconductor memory device compatible with the conventional SRAM is provided. Can be realized.

  Further, by configuring so that the specific mode is entered when a specific state is repeatedly executed a predetermined number of times in succession, it is possible to prevent erroneous entry into the specific mode during the normal mode, and to operate stably. Can be realized.

  As described above, a specific operation mode is designated according to a sequence not used in the normal operation mode, and there is no need to provide a new pin terminal for designating a specific operation mode, so that compatibility between the conventional SRAM and the pin is achieved. It is possible to realize an alternative semiconductor memory device of SRAM that can be maintained.

  That is, a predetermined set of external signals are continuously applied a predetermined number of times in a specific logic state combination, thereby setting a specific mode, thereby using a signal used in the normal mode as an external signal. The specific mode can be set asynchronously without increasing the number of pin terminals and without using a clock signal such as a system clock.

  In addition, by using an address signal as the external signal, a certain state can be accurately set using a large number of signals, and a sequence for setting a specific mode can be surely set.

  In addition, by setting this address signal to a state in which a specific address is designated, in the normal mode, the specific address is accessed more times than the number of times of continuous access, so that adverse effects can be ensured in the normal operation mode. It is possible to set a specific mode without affecting.

  Further, by using the last address as the specific address, it is possible to easily and reliably distinguish the mode of the specific mode entry from the normal mode by accessing an address that is not so used in the normal mode.

  In addition, by using the operation mode instruction signal and writing or reading specific data using an external signal, it is accurately detected that access has been performed asynchronously with a clock such as the system clock. Then, it is possible to enter the specific mode.

  By using a read mode that instructs data reading as this operation mode, even if the data at a specific address is used in the normal mode, the specific mode can be entered without causing destruction of the data. Can do.

  In addition, a specific mode is set by continuously accessing a specific address a predetermined number of times, and in this specific mode, mode means for setting the internal state to a predetermined state can be operated, thereby easily different from normal access. A specific mode can be set in the access sequence to set the internal state to a predetermined state without adding an extra signal.

  In addition, this mode means is configured to generate an operation mode instruction signal by decoding a command of a plurality of bits from the outside, so that the operation state can be ensured by a signal of a plurality of bits from the outside during command mode entry. Can be set.

  In addition, by providing a command decoder that generates a signal that decodes a plurality of predetermined external signals and sets the internal state to a predetermined state in a specific mode, the operation related to this standby state uses normal external signals. It is not necessary to newly set an operation related to the standby state using a specific pin terminal, and a semiconductor memory device having pin compatibility can be realized.

  In addition, the command decoder has a data holding area in the data holding mode in the power holding mode in which the internal power supply is cut off, the wake up mode in which the power down mode is completed, the reset mode in which the internal is set to the initial state, and the data holding mode. By activating either the designation mode or the exit mode designating completion of the command mode, a desired operation mode can be set using these pin terminals used during normal operation.

  Further, by specifying this specific mode when access is performed in a sequence different from the access sequence performed in the normal operation mode, this specific mode can be set without using an additional dedicated signal. . By setting this specific mode when a predetermined address is continuously accessed a predetermined number of times, it is possible to reliably set the specific mode without adversely affecting the normal operation mode.

  In addition, when a predetermined set of external signals are continuously applied a predetermined number of times in a specific logic state combination, a specific mode is entered. By decoding the signal and setting the inside to a predetermined state, the inside can be set to a desired state without using any new additional signals.

  In addition, as a continuous access, a specific mode can be easily set by accessing a specific address.

  Also, a software reset mode for setting the internal state to an initial state by a command, a power-down mode for stopping power supply to a predetermined internal circuit, a wake-up mode for stopping this power-down and an internal reset, and a data holding area By performing either designation or completion of the command mode, it is possible to set the internal state to a desired state using an external signal used during normal access.

  In addition, by providing a circuit for setting the internal state in accordance with the designated operation mode, the state designated by the command can be reliably set.

  In addition, when an external signal satisfies a predetermined condition, a signal for designating the internal state to a specific state can be generated, so that the command for setting the internal state and other signals can be reliably identified. The internal state can be set to a predetermined state with high reliability.

1 schematically shows an entire configuration of a semiconductor memory device according to a first embodiment of the invention. FIG. FIG. 2 is a signal waveform diagram representing a data read operation of the semiconductor memory device shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a signal waveform diagram representing an operation during data writing of the semiconductor memory device shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a mode control circuit shown in FIG. 1. (A) schematically shows a configuration of the command mode detection circuit shown in FIG. 4, and (B) schematically shows a configuration of the shift register shown in FIG. 5 (A). FIG. 6 is a timing chart showing an operation of the command mode detection circuit shown in FIGS. 5 (A) and 5 (B). It is a figure which shows the state transition at the time of command mode entry. FIG. 5 schematically shows a configuration of a mode decoding circuit shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing an operation of the mode decoding circuit shown in FIG. 8. FIG. 9 is a diagram specifically illustrating an example of a configuration of a shift register, a command decoder, and a command set circuit illustrated in FIG. 8. It is a figure which shows the state transition of the command mode of the semiconductor memory device according to this invention. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a wake-up sequence of the semiconductor memory device according to the present invention. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a power-on sequence of the semiconductor memory device according to the present invention. It is a figure which shows schematically the structure of the part relevant to the power down of the state control circuit shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows schematically the structure of the part relevant to the software reset of the state control circuit shown in FIG. FIG. 16 is a signal waveform diagram illustrating an operation of the state control circuit illustrated in FIG. 15. 1 schematically shows a configuration of a memory cell array of a semiconductor memory device according to the present invention. FIG. FIG. 2 schematically shows a configuration of a portion related to refresh of the internal control signal generation circuit shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 19 schematically shows a configuration of a refresh block address generation circuit shown in FIG. 18. FIG. 20 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of one register stage of the shift register with a bypass function shown in FIG. 19. FIG. 20 schematically shows a configuration of a block address register circuit shown in FIG. 19. It is a figure which shows schematically the structure of the principal part of the command mode detection circuit of Embodiment 2 of this invention.

[Embodiment 1]
FIG. 1 schematically shows an overall configuration of the semiconductor memory device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a semiconductor memory device 1 includes a memory cell array 2 having a plurality of memory cells arranged in a matrix, and a row address buffer that receives internal address signal bits A7-A19 and generates an internal row address signal RA. 3, a column address buffer 4 that receives external address signal bits A 0 to A 6 and generates an internal column address signal CA, and a row decoder 5 that decodes the internal row address signal RA and selects a row of the memory cell array 2. The column decoder 6 that decodes the internal column address signal CA to generate a column selection signal for selecting a column of the memory cell array 2 and the data in the memory cells on the row selected by the row decoder 5 are detected and amplified. The selected column of the memory cell array 2 is internally deselected according to the sense amplifier for latching and the column selection signal from the column decoder 6. Including IO gate for coupling to the data line (IO line). In FIG. 1, these sense amplifiers and IO gates are indicated by one block 7.

  Semiconductor memory device 1 further includes a lower input buffer 8 for writing lower byte data DQ0 to DQ7 at the time of data writing, a lower output buffer 9 for outputting lower byte data to the outside at the time of data reading, A high-order input buffer 10 that takes in the high-order byte data DQ8 to DQ15 and generates internal write data, a high-order output buffer 11 that outputs high-order byte data DQ8 to DQ15 when reading data, and an external control signal, that is, a chip enable signal CE #, output enable signal OE #, write enable signal WE #, lower byte enable signal LB #, and upper byte enable signal UB #, an internal control signal generating circuit 12 that generates signals for controlling various internal operations.

  When chip enable signal CE # is at L level, it indicates that semiconductor memory device 1 is selected. When chip enable signal CE # is at L level, semiconductor memory device 1 can be accessed. it can. Output enable signal OE # designates the data read mode when L level. Write enable signal WE # designates a data write operation when L level. Lower byte enable signal LB # indicates that lower byte data DQ0-DQ7 is valid when L level, and upper byte enable signal UB # indicates that upper byte data DQ8-DQ15 is valid.

  Internal control signal generation circuit 12 is responsive to chip enable signal CE #, output enable signal OE #, and write enable signal WE # to provide row address buffer 3, column address buffer 4, row decoder 5, column decoder 6, and sense amplifier. / Controls the operation of the IO gate block 7. Internal control signal generation circuit 12 further includes lower input buffer 8, lower output buffer 9, upper input buffer 10, and upper output buffer according to the operation mode in accordance with upper byte enable signal UB # and lower byte enable signal LB #. 11 activity / inactivity is controlled.

  Semiconductor memory device 1 further receives external control signals CE #, OE # and WE #, address signals A0-A19 and data bits DQ0-DQ15, and sets the semiconductor memory device 1 to a specific operation mode. A control circuit 20 and a state control circuit 22 for setting the internal state of the semiconductor memory device 1 to a designated state according to a mode setting signal MD from the mode control circuit 20 are included.

  The mode control circuit 20 will be described in detail later, but when the semiconductor memory device 1 is accessed in an access sequence that is not used in the normal access mode, the semiconductor memory device 1 enters the command mode. Enters and accepts commands that specify a particular internal state. In this state, a specific address is designated and a command for designating the internal state is given using data bits DQ0 to DQ15. An internal state setting signal (mode setting signal) MD is generated according to the decoding result of this command.

  State control circuit 22 sets the internal state to a state such as an initial state and a power-down state, for example, according to state control signal MD from mode control circuit 20. The state control circuit 22 sets an internal state related to an operation mode in which low power consumption is required, such as a standby state, as the internal state. These configurations will be described in detail later. By using a command from the outside for setting the internal state, it is not necessary to use a dedicated pin terminal for specifying a state such as power down. In addition, the desired operation mode can be specified with the same signal timing relationship as in the normal operation mode for data access, and the external memory controller can specify the desired operation mode only by changing the program. Therefore, it is not necessary to significantly change the internal configuration of the conventional external device, and compatibility with the conventional memory can be easily maintained.

  FIG. 2 is a signal waveform diagram representing an operation at the time of data reading of semiconductor memory device 1 shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, chip enable signal CE # is set at L level, and upper byte enable signal UB # designating upper byte data and lower byte data and L byte according to data bits for reading lower byte enable signal LB # are read out. Set to level. In this state, address signal bits A0 to A19 are set, and subsequently output enable signal OE # is set to L level. Write enable signal WE # is maintained at the H level.

  Triggered by the fall of output enable signal OE # to L level, row address buffer 3 and column address buffer 4 take in external address signal bits A19-A0 under the control of internal control signal generation circuit 12, Internal row address signal RA and internal column address signal CA are generated. In accordance with internal row address signal RA and internal column address signal CA, row decoder 5 and column decoder 6 perform decoding operations at predetermined timings under the control of internal control signal generation circuit 12, respectively, to select memory cells. To read the data in the selected memory cell.

  When the upper byte enable signal UB # is at the H level, the upper byte data DQ8 to DQ15 are in a high impedance state, and when the lower byte enable signal LB # is set to the L level, valid data is read into the lower byte data DQ0 to DQ7. The The external data is kept valid for a period from when the output enable signal OE # rises to the H level until the output circuit is set to the disabled state.

  FIG. 3 is a signal waveform diagram representing an operation during data writing of semiconductor memory device 1 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the validity / invalidity of the upper byte data and the lower byte data is designated in accordance with the upper byte enable signal UB # and the lower byte enable signal LB # even during data writing. When the chip enable signal CE # becomes L level, the semiconductor memory device 1 can be accessed. At the time of data writing, write enable signal WE # is lowered to L level. Triggered by the fall of write enable signal WE #, external address signal bits A19-A0 are taken in to generate internal row address signal RA and internal column address signal CA, and the row decoder shown in FIG. 5 and column decoder 6 perform a memory cell selection operation. These external data bits DQ0-DQ15 are selectively written internally in accordance with upper byte enable signal UB # and lower byte enable signal LB #.

  Data bits DQ0-DQ15 require setup time tsu and hold time thd for the rise of write enable signal WE #. A semiconductor memory device 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a DRAM-based semiconductor memory device, in which row selection operations and column selection operations are performed in a time division manner. Therefore, when data access is designated by write enable signal WE # or read enable signal OE #, a row and column address signal is generated internally in accordance with an external address signal. When this memory cell is selected, a row selection operation is first performed, and the memory cell data is latched by the sense amplifier. Subsequently, a column selecting operation is performed, and data reading from the selected memory cell or data writing to the selected memory cell is executed.

  Therefore, write enable signal WE # must be maintained at the L level during the period until this column selection operation is performed, and an external data bit is used to write data to the selected memory cell by this column selection operation. A setup time tsu is required for DQ0 to DQ15. The hold time thd may therefore be a minimum of 0 ns (nanoseconds).

  2 and FIG. 3, semiconductor memory device 1 shown in FIG. 1 takes in an external address signal in accordance with chip enable signal CE #, output enable signal WE # and write enable signal WE #. Data writing / reading is performed. Therefore, the control signals used in these semiconductor memory devices 1 are the same as those of the SRAM, and the interface of the semiconductor memory device 1 is compatible with the SRAM.

  Mode control circuit 20 designates a specific operation mode when an access is executed in a sequence different from a normal access sequence in accordance with external control signals CE #, OE # and WE # and address signal bits A0-A19. It is determined that the mode to be performed (command mode) is designated, and when the command mode is entered, the internal operation state is controlled in accordance with an external signal (command). That is, when a specific access sequence is executed, the command mode is set and a command from the outside is accepted. In this command mode, when a signal such as an external data bit is written by designating a specific address, these external signals are taken in as a command, and the inside is set to a state designated by this command.

  FIG. 4 schematically shows a configuration of mode control circuit 20 shown in FIG. In FIG. 4, mode control circuit 20 receives external control signals CE #, OE # and WE # and address signal bits A19-A0, and when these signals are applied in a predetermined sequence, Command mode detection circuit 30 for generating mode entry signal CMERY, activated when command entry signal CMERY is activated, receives predetermined bits of data bits DQ0 to DQ15 as commands, decodes the mode designation signal according to the decoding result A mode decode circuit 32 for generating MD is included.

  The command mode detection circuit 30 activates the command mode entry signal CMERY when the address signal bits A19 to A0 specify a specific address and are continuously accessed a predetermined number of times. Specifically, as an example, the command mode detection circuit 30 activates the command mode entry signal CMERY when data reading is continuously executed four times for the final address (FFFFFH). When the command mode entry signal CMERY is activated, the mode decode circuit 32 becomes ready to accept commands from the outside.

  In the normal operation mode, data is hardly read four times continuously from the same address. In particular, the final address is rarely used. By setting the command mode when access is performed in an access sequence different from that in the normal access mode, the same signal timing relationship as in the normal operation mode can be ensured without using a complicated signal timing relationship. The command mode can be specified for.

  Even if valid data is stored at the final address, only the read mode is specified, and the stored data at the final address is only read at the time of command mode entry. There is no data corruption.

  FIG. 5A schematically shows an example of the configuration of command mode detection circuit 30 shown in FIG. In FIG. 5A, command mode detection circuit 30 receives a decode circuit 30a for decoding address signal bits A0-A19, an output enable signal OE # and a chip enable signal CE #, and designates a data read mode. In response to read mode detection circuit 30b activating read mode instruction signal φrz, chip enable signal CE # and write enable signal WE #, write mode instruction signal φwz is set to L level when data writing is designated. The write mode detection circuit 30c that is driven at the same time, the shifter 30d that sequentially transfers the output signal FAD of the address decode circuit 30a in accordance with the read mode instruction signal φrz from the read mode detection circuit 30b, and the output bits Q1-Q4 of the shifter 30d Sequence decoding circuit 30e for decoding and sequence decoding And a flipflop 30f of the output signal of the road 30e is set at the H level. A command mode entry signal CMERY is generated from the flip-flop 30f.

  Address decode circuit 30a raises decode signal FAD to H level when all address signal bits A19-A0 are "1". That is, when the final address “FFFFFH” is designated, the decode signal FAD is set to the H level. Read mode detection circuit 30b sets read mode instruction signal φrz to L level when output enable signal OE # and chip enable signal CE # are both in an active state of L level. Write mode detection circuit 30c sets write mode instruction signal φwz to L level when both write enable signal WE # and chip enable signal CE # are in the active state of L level.

  As shown in FIG. 5B, the shifter 30d includes D latches 30da-30de that are cascaded in four stages. Each of these D latches 30da-30de takes in the signal applied to its input when read mode designating signal φrz attains L level, and latches the fetched signal when read mode designating signal φrz attains H level. It becomes a latch state to output with a finger. These D latches 30da-30de have their output data bits Q1-Q4 reset to "0" when the write mode instruction signal φwz becomes L level.

  When all output bits Q1-Q4 of shifter 30d attain H level, sequence decode circuit 30e raises its output signal to set set / reset flip-flop 30f and sets command mode entry signal CMERY to H level. To drive. Set / reset flip-flop 30f is reset by a reset signal RST generated when, for example, a command mode exit command is given.

  The flip-flop 30f is used as an operation mode specified at the time of command mode entry, as will be described later, there is a mode for reading data indicating a memory block specified as a data holding block. This is because the command may not always be written in the command entry mode.

  FIG. 6 is a timing chart showing the operation of the command mode detection circuit 30 shown in FIGS. 5 (A) and 5 (B). Hereinafter, the operation of the command mode detection circuit 30 will be described with reference to FIG. 5A, FIG. 5B, and FIG.

  Address signal bits A0-A19 are all set to H level, and final address FFFFFH is designated. Next, output enable signal OE # is set to L level to instruct data reading. Chip enable signal CE # is at L level. Therefore, when this data read mode is designated, read mode instruction signal φrz from read mode detection circuit 30b attains an L level, and shifter 30d takes in decode signal FAD from decode circuit 30a. Once output enable signal OE # is set to H level, the data read mode is completed.

  Here, the semiconductor memory device shown in FIG. 1 is a DRAM-based semiconductor memory device, and one access cycle for performing row selection and column selection is defined by output enable signal OE #. In order to complete one access cycle, output enable signal OE # is once raised to H level. When output enable signal OE # rises to H level, read mode instruction signal φrz from read mode detection circuit 30b attains H level, and shifter 30d performs a shift operation to raise its output bit Q1 to H level. That is, D latches 30ba-30de shown in FIG. 5B each take in the signal applied to its input when read mode detection signal φrz is at L level, and read mode instruction signal φrz is at H level. Then, the signal taken in at the output is output and the latch state is entered.

  Thereafter, when the data read operation for the final address FFFFFH is performed four times, all the output bits Q1-Q4 of the shifter 30d become H level in response to the rise of the read mode detection signal φrz, and the set / reset flip-flops accordingly. 30f is set, and the command mode entry signal CMERY becomes H level. Thereby, the semiconductor memory device is set to the command mode.

  The final address FFFFFH is not so accessed in the normal operation mode. Further, data reading for the same address four times in succession is not performed in the normal operation mode. The most conceivable mode is only to read the upper byte data and lower byte data from the final address. Even in this case, data reading is performed only twice consecutively for the final address. Therefore, data reading for the final address for four consecutive times is not performed in a normal operation cycle. Therefore, the semiconductor memory device can be surely set to the command mode without adversely affecting the operation in the normal operation mode.

  When data writing is designated at the time of command mode entry, write mode instruction signal φwz is at L level, shifter 30b is reset, and all its output bits Q1-Q4 are at L level. In this case, it is necessary to execute the command mode entry operation again from the beginning.

  In the command mode entry, when data reading is performed by designating an address different from the final address, the decode signal FAD output from the address decode circuit 30a becomes L level. In this case, in the bits Q1-Q4 of the shifter 30d, one bit is kept at the L level thereafter until four consecutive readings are performed on the final address. Therefore, command mode entry signal CMERY can always be set to the H level only when data reading is continuously performed four times with respect to the final address. Thereby, it is possible to identify the access in a sequence different from that in the normal operation mode and designate the command mode.

  A command mode is set using the same signals as SRAM, that is, chip enable signal CE #, output enable signal OE #, write enable signal WE #, and an address signal, and a clock signal such as a system clock signal This command mode can be set asynchronously, and the command mode can be set using an interface compatible with SRAM.

  Note that the address signal bits A0 to A19 supplied to the decode circuit 30a may be signals from the row address buffer 3 and the column address buffer 4 shown in FIG. When output enable signal OE # goes low, address buffers 3 and 4 take in addresses and generate internal address signals. Further, the address signal bits A0 to A19 for the decode circuit 30a may be a signal generated via a simple input buffer circuit.

  FIG. 7 shows a state transition at the time of command mode entry in the semiconductor memory device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 7, the state transition at the time of command mode entry will be briefly described.

  In normal read / write state ST0 in which normal data reading / writing is performed, data reading is instructed to address FFFFFH (Hex.). The state transitions to the command mode setup state ST1 by reading the data for the final address. When data reading is executed again for the final address in this command mode setup state ST1, the state shifts to the next command mode setup state ST2. When data read is instructed again for the final address, the final command mode setup state ST3 is entered. When data is read again from the final address in the final command mode setup state ST3, the semiconductor memory device 1 enters the command mode and enters a command standby state ST4 where the command is waited.

  In these setup states ST1 to ST3, when an access different from the data reading for the final address is performed, the command mode setup is reset, and the state returns to the normal read / write state ST0.

  FIG. 8 schematically shows a structure of mode decode circuit 32 shown in FIG. In FIG. 8, an input / output buffer 40 for inputting / outputting external data DQ0-DQ7 and an input buffer 41 for inputting external control signals CE #, WE #, and OE # are provided in the preceding stage of mode decode circuit 32. The input / output buffer 40 corresponds to the input buffer 8 and the output buffer 9 shown in FIG. Input buffer 41 buffers external chip enable signal CE #, write enable signal WE #, and output enable signal OE #, respectively, and performs internal chip enable signal CE, internal write enable signal WE, and internal output enable signal OE. Is generated. Internal chip enable signal CE, internal write enable signal WE, and internal output enable signal OE are all set to H level when activated.

  Mode decode circuit 32 includes NAND circuit 42 that receives internal chip enable signal CE and internal write enable signal WE, NAND circuit 43 that receives internal chip enable signal CE and internal output enable signal OE, and outputs of NAND circuits 42 and 43. NAND circuit 44 that receives the signal, AND circuit 45 that receives the output signal of NAND circuit 44 and command mode entry signal CMERY to generate pulse signal PLS, and shift register 47 that sequentially transfers the data applied in accordance with pulse signal PLS In accordance with command mode entry signal CMERY, bus switching circuit 46 for coupling input / output buffer 40 to one of the internal write / read circuit and shift register 47, command decoder 48 for decoding data output from shift register 47, It includes a command set circuit 49 for generating an internal operation mode instruction signal output signal by latching the command decoder 48 in accordance with the decode signal FAD and the pulse signal PLS from the address decoding circuit shown in (A).

  In the command mode, the lower byte data DQ0 to DQ7 are used as commands, and the upper byte data DQ8 to DQ15 are not used. In this command mode, the fact that a command is given is detected by the decode signal FAD. Therefore, for example, when an address other than the final address is designated and data is written in the command mode, the command is not taken.

  The internal write / read circuit includes a preamplifier and a write driver, and exchanges internal data with selected memory cells of the memory cell array. When the command mode is designated, the internal write / read circuit is disconnected from the input / output buffer, and data is not written / read to / from the memory cell array. In this command mode, row and column selection operations may be prohibited. In this configuration, row and column selection operations are prohibited by the command mode entry signal CMERY. However, the circuit that takes in the address signal and data is operable. Instead, when data bits DQ0 to DQ7 and address signal bits A0 to A19 are received through a simple buffer circuit and these command mode entry and command mode setting are performed, these buffer circuits are externally controlled. Since the circuit operates asynchronously with the signal, in the command mode, all the circuits that execute normal access related to row and column selection may be set to the operation stop state (standby state) according to the command mode entry signal CMERY.

  In accordance with the output signal of the command decoder 48, the command set circuit 49 exits the command mode and shifts to the normal operation mode, exit command signal EXIT for shutting off the supply of power to the internal circuit, this power down Wake-up instruction signal WKU for completing the mode, data holding block setting signal DHBS for designating the data holding area, data holding area reading instruction signal DHBR for reading information about the data holding block area, and software for setting the interior to the initial state A reset signal SFRST is generated.

  These power down mode, software reset mode, and data holding area designation designate a state related to the standby state of the semiconductor memory device. By specifying the data holding area, when the data holding area is held for a long time, the data in the data holding area is held. However, no data is held when the power down mode is set.

  The internal mode designation signals output from these command set circuits 49 correspond to the mode setting signal MD shown in FIG.

  FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing an operation of mode decode circuit 32 shown in FIG. The operation of the mode decode circuit 32 shown in FIG. 8 will be briefly described below with reference to the timing chart shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 9, a case where a command designating one operation mode is constituted by 3-byte data D0-D2 is shown as an example.

  In the command mode, command mode entry signal CMERY is at H level. In command standby stage ST4, final address FFFFFH is designated and data writing is performed. When write enable signal WE # is activated, the output signal of NAND circuit 42 shown in FIG. 8 becomes L level, and accordingly, the output signal of NAND circuit 42 becomes H level. Since command mode entry signal CMERY is at H level, pulse signal PLS from AND circuit 45 is at H level. Shift register 47 performs a shift operation in accordance with pulse signal PLS, and takes in data bits DQ7 to DQ0 applied from bus switching circuit 46.

  Here, the bus switching circuit 46 connects the input / output buffer 40 to the shift register 47 when the command mode entry signal CMERY is activated, and the internal write / read circuit is separated from the input / output buffer 40. ing. That is, at the time of this command mode entry, data is not written / read to / from the memory cell. As described above, this is easily realized by simply stopping the operation of the internal control signal generation circuit 12 shown in FIG. 1 according to the command mode entry signal CMERY.

  When the final address is designated and data is written a predetermined number of times, data D0, D1, and D2 are stored in shift register 47. The command decoder 48 always decodes the data stored in the shift register 47. According to the data pattern of the data D0-D2, the command decoder 48 determines that a command designating a specific operation mode is given, and The corresponding internal mode designation signal is driven to the H level.

  When the pulse signal PLS is applied and the address decode signal FAD indicating that the final address has been specified becomes H level, the command set circuit 49 sets the corresponding internal mode designation signal to H level according to the output signal of the command decoder 48. Drive to active state.

  Even when data reading is designated when the command mode is set, pulse signal PLS is activated. In this case, the shift register 47 performs a shift operation and takes in and transfers the data supplied via the bus switching circuit 46. Therefore, in this case, except for the data holding area read command, data completely different from the command is taken into the shift register 47, and the output signal of the command decoder 48 maintains the inactive state.

  Even in the data read mode, the pulse signal PLS is generated when the data holding block read mode DHBR is designated and the data holding block stored in a register (not shown) is designated via the output buffer circuit by designating the read mode. This is for reading a specific signal. By the shift operation of shift register 47, a data holding area read command is applied to command decoder 48, and data holding area read instruction signal DHBR becomes H level. In response to this, storage of a register for storing data holding area specifying data is stored. Data is read out.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a specific configuration of shift register 47, command decoder 48, and command set circuit 49 shown in FIG. In FIG. 10, the shift register 47 includes register circuits 47a to 47c each having a 1-byte register stage. These register circuits 47a-47c perform a shift operation in byte units in accordance with pulse signal PLS. Thereby, data bits DQ7-DQ0 from bus switching circuit 46 shown in FIG. 8 are sequentially transferred to register circuits 47a, 47b, and 47c in accordance with pulse signal PLS.

  Command decoder 48 includes a decode circuit 48a provided corresponding to each operation mode designation signal. In FIG. 10, decode circuit 48a receives the data bits of register circuits 47a-47c, and sets the output signal to the H level when they are in a specific predetermined combination. In the designated operation mode, this command may be composed of byte data or 2-byte data, and this decoding circuit is provided according to the configuration of each command.

  The command set circuit 49 includes a trigger signal generation circuit 49a that generates a trigger signal according to the decode signal FAD indicating the designation of the final address and the pulse signal PLS, and a corresponding command decode circuit according to the output signal of the trigger signal generation circuit 49a. A latch circuit 49b is provided for latching the output signal 48a. Trigger signal generation circuit 49a is formed of, for example, an AND circuit, and outputs an H level signal when decode signal FAD and pulse signal PLS are at an H level.

  Latch circuit 49b inverts a transfer gate 50a that becomes conductive in accordance with an output signal of trigger signal generation circuit 49a, an inverter 50b that inverts a corresponding command decode signal provided through transfer gate 50a, and an output signal of inverter 50b. Inverter 50b for generating mode designation signal MDa and inverter 50c for inverting the output signal of inverter 50b and transmitting the inverted signal to the input of inverter 50b.

  Therefore, latch circuit 49b enters a through state when the output signal of trigger signal generating circuit 49a attains an H level, takes in and latches the output signal of corresponding command decode circuit 48a, and sets mode designation signal MDa in an active state of H. Drive to level. Therefore, each mode designation signal can be set by providing this latch circuit 49b corresponding to each mode designation signal EXIT, PWD, WKU, BHBS, DHBR, and SFRST.

  Even if the trigger signal generation circuit 49a is provided in common for the plurality of mode designation signals, the two operation modes are not executed simultaneously. For example, in order to complete the power down mode, an exit command is given. Thus, exit mode designation signal EXT needs to be activated. In this case, power down mode designation signal PWD is deactivated. Therefore, no particular problem occurs.

  A flip-flop may be arranged corresponding to each command, and this flip-flop may be set when a corresponding command is given. For example, the flip-flop may be reset by applying a wakeup command, an exit command or a reset command, or designating the end of the command mode.

  That is, in the command set circuit 49 shown in FIG. 10, a set / reset flip-flop may be used instead of the latch circuit 49b. For example, the command set circuit 49 is reset when an exit command is given or when a software reset command SFRST is given. The flip-flop only needs to be reset when an appropriate command is applied according to the operation mode specified by each mode.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the transition of the internal state when the command mode is set. In FIG. 11, since the setting of the command is performed by designating the writing of data to the final address FFFFFH, only the data indicating the command is shown in FIG. In the command stand-by state ST4, when data B1H is written by designating the final address, the state shifts to the software power-down setup state ST5. In the command mode, data is not written to the memory cell array (the memory array is held in a standby state).

  Next, when the final address is designated again and predetermined data DOH is written, the state shifts to the software power down state ST6. In the software power down state ST6, the power down designation signal PWD from the command set circuit is activated, and the power supply to the internal circuit is cut off. When the power-down is completed, in this state, a transition is made to a command standby state ST7 that waits for the next command. This command standby state ST7 is a power-down state, and power supply to circuits other than the mode control circuit 22 (including the input buffer circuit) shown in FIG. 1 is cut off.

  When data FAH is written by designating the final address in the command standby state ST7, the state shifts to the wakeup state ST8. In this wake-up state ST8, power is supplied to the internal circuit where the power-down is completed and the power supply is cut off. After the power supply is restored, the state shifts from the wake-up state ST8 to the command standby state ST4 that waits for the next command. The reason why the state does not shift from the wake-up state ST8 to the normal read / write state ST0 after completion of the wake-up operation is that the internal state needs to be initialized and a command for this needs to be executed.

  In the command standby state ST4, when data D2H is written by designating the final address, the state shifts to the software reset setup state ST9. In the software reset setup state ST9, when the final address is designated again and the data DOH is written, the state shifts to the software reset state ST10. In this software reset state ST10, the internal peripheral circuit is initialized. When the initialization of the internal state is completed in the software reset state ST10, the state again shifts to the command standby state ST4. In this software reset state, the internal node is initialized to a predetermined potential level in accordance with the power-on detection signal, similarly to when the power is turned on. However, at the time of this initialization, a dummy cycle is executed a predetermined number of times as is done in a normal DRAM, and the internal circuit is operated to reliably set the internal state to the standby state. good.

  In this command standby state ST4, when data FFH is written by designating the final address, the state shifts to the exit state ST11. In the exit state ST11, the reset signal RST shown in FIG. 5A is reset, the command mode entry signal CMERY is deactivated, the command mode CM is completed, and the state is changed to the normal read / write state ST0. Transition. As a result, normal data can be written / read out thereafter. At this time, the command mode can be set up again.

  On the other hand, when the last address is specified and data FFH is written in the command standby state ST7, the state shifts again to the exit state ST11, the power-down state is completed, and the state shifts to the normal read / write state ST0. To do. In this case, since internal initialization has not been performed, it is necessary to newly perform a software reset.

  On the other hand, when the data D3H is written by designating the final address in the command standby state ST4, the state shifts to the DHB selection setup state ST12. In the DHB selection setup state ST12, the final address is designated again, and the data DHB designating the data holding block area is designated, whereby the state shifts to the DHB selection setup state ST13.

  In this state ST13, when the data DOH is written again by designating the final address, the data holding block area is set according to the data DHB, and the state shifts to the DHB write state ST14. In this state ST14, data for specifying the data holding area is written, and the data holding area is designated.

  When the setting of the data holding block in this state ST14 is completed, the state again shifts to the command standby state ST4.

  On the other hand, when the last address is designated and data 7DH is written in the command standby state ST4, the state shifts to the DHB read setup state ST15. In this DHB read setup state ST15, the state for reading the contents of the data holding block is set. When data reading is executed in this state ST15, the state shifts to the DHB read state ST16, and each data holding block information is called. When this DHB read state ST16 is completed, the state again shifts to the command standby state ST4. By performing this DHB read, it is possible to confirm a memory block in which data retention is designated.

  In these setup states, when an access different from the access designating the writing of data DOH to the final address or the data reading of the final address required for each internal state setting is performed, the state again shifts to the command standby state ST4. To do.

  In the command standby state ST4, it is possible to easily shift from the setup state to the internal command execution state by designating the final address from the outside and writing the command via the data terminal. As a result, various operation modes of the semiconductor memory device, in particular, operation modes related to initialization can be set while maintaining pin compatibility with a normal SRAM. In particular, the lower byte data DQ0 to DQ7 are used for setting this command, and the upper byte data DQ8 to DQ15 can be used in place of the lower byte data DQ0 to DQ7. Both command setting by data and command setting by lower byte data can be easily realized.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a wake-up sequence for completing power-down in the state transition diagram shown in FIG. Hereinafter, this wake-up sequence will be briefly described.

  As shown in FIG. 11, in the command standby state ST7, the semiconductor memory device 1 is in the software power down state (step STP0). In this state, the state ST5 and ST6 shown in FIG. 11 are transitioned to execute the wakeup command (step STP1). By executing this wake-up command, the internal power-down circuit is powered up (power supply voltage is supplied). The power supply is merely performed, and the internal state is indefinite. Therefore, for internal initialization, the states ST9 and ST10 shown in FIG. 11 are transited and a software reset command is executed (step STP2). By executing this software reset command, the internal state is initialized to a predetermined state.

  After initialization of the internal state, the process proceeds to state ST11 shown in FIG. 11, and an exit command is executed (step STP3). Execution of this exit command completes the command mode and returns to the normal write / read state ST0 shown in FIG. Therefore, in step STP4 in which the next operation is performed, normal read / write data access may be performed, and a continuous read operation to the final address may be performed in order to set the command mode again. .

  On the other hand, when the exit command is executed in the software power down state ST7 (step STP5), the command mode is completed even in this case, and the power supply voltage is supplied to the internal circuit in the power down state. When the exit command is executed, the command mode is completed, the power-down state is canceled, and only the transition to the normal write / read state ST0 shown in FIG. 7 is made. The internal state of this semiconductor memory device is undefined. It is. Therefore, the continuous read operation for the final address is again executed a predetermined number of times (four times) to set the command mode (step STP6). After entering the command mode, step STP2 is entered again, a software reset command is executed, and subsequent steps STP3 and STP4 are executed.

  Therefore, even during the transition from the power-down state to the power-up state, only the command is executed, and it is not required to set the internal state by hardware via a specific pin terminal from the outside. No special signal timing is required, and the operation for this initialization is performed by setting the same signal logic level as in the normal operation by using the terminal group used in the normal operation. Can do.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an operation sequence at power-on. When power is turned on (step STP10), it is determined whether or not power supply voltage VCC has reached a predetermined value or more (step STP11). Whether or not the power supply voltage VCC has reached a predetermined value is detected by, for example, a power-on detection signal POR output from an internal power-on detection circuit (POR detection circuit).

  If it is determined in step STP11 that the power supply voltage VCC has reached a predetermined value or more, then it waits until the internal state is stabilized, for example, for a predetermined time of 500 μs (step STP12). When this predetermined time has elapsed, the command mode entry operation is executed, and the command mode is entered (step STP13). With this command mode entry, the mode decode circuit 32 shown in FIG. 4 enters the command standby state ST4 shown in FIG. When the command mode is entered, a software reset command is executed (step STP14). By executing this software reset command, the internal state is initialized. By executing the software reset command, the internal state of the peripheral circuit that does not receive the power-on detection signal POR is reliably initialized.

  Next, an exit command is executed (step STP15), the command mode is shifted to the normal mode, and the next operation is executed (step STP16). This step STP16 completes the setting of the normal mode after the power is turned on.

  Therefore, even when the internal state is initialized after the power is turned on, the internal state can be reliably set to the initial state using a normal signal. This is the same when power is restored after power is shut off.

  FIG. 14 schematically shows a configuration of a portion related to power down of state control circuit 22 shown in FIG. 14, the state control circuit 22 includes an OR circuit 60a that receives a wake-up instruction signal WKU from the mode control circuit and an exit instruction signal EXIT from the mode control circuit 20, and a power-down instruction signal PWD from the mode control circuit 20. A set / reset flip-flop 60b that is set when activated and reset when the output signal of the OR circuit 60a is at the H level, and a power supply node according to a signal from the output Q of the set / reset flip-flop 60b, the memory circuit 50 Power supply transistor 60c coupled to power supply line 52. Power supply transistor 60c is formed of, for example, a P channel MOS transistor, and becomes non-conductive when set / reset flip-flop 60b is set to isolate memory circuit power supply line 52 from the power supply node. The memory circuit power supply line includes power supply lines provided separately for the peripheral circuit in the memory circuit 50 and the memory cell array, that is, a peripheral power supply line and an array power supply line.

  The mode control circuit 20 is always supplied with the power supply voltage VCC. The power supply voltage VCC is also supplied to an input / output circuit (not shown) (an input / output circuit used for specifying a command mode) even in the power down mode.

  In the state control circuit 22 shown in FIG. 14, when the power down mode is entered, the power down instruction signal PWD becomes H level, the set / reset flip-flop 60b is set, and the signal from the output Q becomes H level. It becomes. Accordingly, power supply transistor 60c is turned off, and supply of power supply voltage VCC to power supply line 52 for memory circuit 50 is interrupted. Memory circuit 50 includes memory cell array 2 shown in FIG. 1 and its peripheral circuits.

  When the operation of the input buffer is controlled by internal control signal generation circuit 12 when a signal indicating data writing / reading is supplied to mode control circuit 20, internal control signal generation circuit 12 The power supply voltage is also supplied to the input / output buffer circuit controller. A portion related to row and column selection of the memory cell array is included in the memory circuit 50, and the supply of the power supply voltage is cut off.

  When a wakeup command is given, the wakeup instruction signal WKU becomes H level, the output signal of the OR circuit 60a becomes H level, the set / reset flip-flop 60b is reset, and the signal from the output Q becomes L level, The power supply transistor 60 c is turned on, and the power supply voltage Vcc is supplied to the memory circuit 50.

  When the exit command is given, the exit instruction signal EXIT becomes H level, the output signal of the OR circuit 60a becomes H level, and similarly, the set / reset flip-flop 60b is reset. Accordingly, power supply transistor 60c is turned on to couple memory power supply line 52 to the power supply terminal and receive power supply voltage VCC. A predetermined time is required until the voltage of the memory power supply line 52 is stabilized and the state of the internal circuit is stabilized.

  FIG. 15 schematically shows a configuration of a portion related to software reset of state control circuit 22 shown in FIG. In FIG. 15, the state control circuit 22 includes a power-on detection circuit 62a that detects whether or not the power supply voltage VCC has reached a predetermined voltage level, a power-on detection signal POR and a software reset signal from the power-on detection circuit 62a. A gate circuit 62b that receives SFRST and generates a reset signal RSTT is included. The gate circuit 62b drives the reset signal RSTT to H level when the power-on detection signal POR is at L level or the software reset signal SFRST becomes H level.

  In memory circuit 50, a reset transistor 54 is provided for a predetermined internal node 53, and predetermined internal node 53 is set to the ground voltage level in accordance with reset signal RSTT. Therefore, in the initial setting, when internal node 53 is reset to power supply voltage VCC level, a P-channel MOS transistor is used as a resetting transistor, and when conductive, predetermined internal node 53 becomes a power supply node. Combined.

  In accordance with software reset signal SFRST, an array activation signal is internally generated a predetermined number of times, and a dummy cycle for executing a row selection operation is executed a predetermined number of times to initialize the internal state.

  FIG. 16 is a signal waveform diagram representing an operation of state control circuit 22 shown in FIG. The operation of the state control circuit 22 shown in FIG. 15 will be briefly described below with reference to the signal waveform diagram shown in FIG. At the time of recovery after power-on or power-off, the power supply voltage VCC is supplied and the voltage level rises. When the power supply voltage VCC reaches a predetermined voltage level, the power-on detection signal POR from the power-on detection circuit 62a becomes L level for a predetermined period, and accordingly, the reset signal RSTT from the gate circuit 62b becomes H level. Thereby, internal node 53 is reset to a predetermined voltage level when the power is turned on or when the power supply is restored after the power is turned off.

  When the voltage level of the internal node is stabilized, software reset signal SFRST is then driven to an active state according to the software reset command. Also in this case, the reset signal RSTT becomes H level by the gate circuit 62b, and the predetermined internal node 53 is initialized to the ground voltage level in the memory circuit 50.

  By using this software reset command (reset instruction signal) SFRST, the power supply is detected even when the internal power supply is cut off in the power down mode and the power supply voltage is supplied from the outside. Instead of the signal POR, the internal node can be reset. Further, by performing a software reset after the voltage level of the internal node is stabilized, the internal node can be surely initialized to a predetermined voltage level. As a result, initialization of the internal node and initialization after completion of the standby state can be reliably performed in the standby state.

  When the semiconductor memory device is held in a standby state for a long period of time, the semiconductor memory device is set to a data holding mode and internally refreshes stored data according to a self-refresh mode at a predetermined interval. By specifying the data holding area at the time of the refresh, only the necessary area is refreshed, the number of refreshes is reduced, and the current consumption in the data holding mode is reduced.

  FIG. 17 is a diagram schematically showing a correspondence relationship between the memory cell array and the data holding block specifying data. In FIG. 17, memory cell array 2 is divided into eight memory array blocks MAB0-MAB7. These memory blocks MAB0 to MAB7 are designated by data holding block specific bits DHB0 to DHB7, respectively. The data holding block specific bits DHB0 to DHB7 are set in the data holding register 70 according to the external data DQ0 to DQ7 when the DHB selection mode is applied.

  At the time of DHB reading, the digital holding block specific bits DHB0 to DHB7 stored in the data holding register 70 are read out. That is, when a DHB selection command is given and the DHB selection signal DHBS from the command set circuit 49 shown in FIG. 8 becomes H level, the data holding block specific bits DQ0 to DQ7 stored in the shift register 47 are changed to the data holding register. 70. When a DHB read command is applied and DHB read signal DHBR from command set circuit 49 shown in FIG. 8 becomes H level active state, the data stored in data holding register 70 is read out and the data shown in FIG. It is supplied to the output buffer via the bus switching circuit and read out to the outside.

  The data holding register 70 may be constituted by a latch circuit provided for each data holding specific bit, or by a set / reset flip-flop arranged corresponding to each data holding block specific bit. May be.

  Data stored in the data holding register 70 is applied to the refresh control circuit included in the internal control signal generation circuit 12 shown in FIG. 1, and the refresh area is set.

  When an area for holding data is specified by performing refresh, the method for specifying the refresh address area differs depending on the setting mode (specification) of the data holding area. In the following, an example of a method capable of setting whether to hold data for each of the memory blocks MAB0 to MAB7 will be described.

  FIG. 18 schematically shows a structure of a refresh control unit included in internal control signal generation circuit 12 shown in FIG. In FIG. 18, the refresh control unit generates a refresh activation signal RRAS at predetermined intervals, and a refresh address counter whose count value is sequentially updated under the control of the refresh control circuit 72. 74, a refresh block address generating circuit 76 for generating a refresh block address for specifying a refresh block, in accordance with data holding area data (data holding block specifying bits) DHB0 to DHB7 and a count-up signal CUP from the refresh address counter 74; A refresh address generation circuit 7 for generating a refresh address REFAD according to the output bits of the refresh address counter 74 and the output bits of the refresh block address generation circuit 76 Including the.

  Refresh activation signal RRAS from refresh control circuit 72 is applied to a row related circuit related to a row selection operation such as a row decoder, a sense amplifier, a row address buffer, and the like. The refresh address counter 74 generates an in-block address that specifies a word line in the memory block, that is, a refresh word line address.

  The fresh counter 74 is updated every time the refresh operation is completed. When the refreshing of the data stored in the memory cells in one memory block is completed, the refresh address counter 74 generates a count up signal CUP.

  Refresh block address generation circuit 76 designates the head refresh block address in accordance with data holding area data (data holding block specifying bits) DHB0 to DHB7, performs a shift operation in accordance with count-up signal CUP, and sequentially specifies data holding blocks. A refresh block address is generated. In this shift operation, the shift operation is bypassed for a memory block different from the data holding area according to refresh block specific bits DHB0 to DHB7.

  Therefore, when the data holding block specific bits DHB0 to DHB7 are "1", for example, and the corresponding memory block is designated as the data holding block, the refresh block address generation circuit 76 uses the memory block in the data holding area. Are sequentially generated.

  The refresh address generation circuit 78 receives the refresh word line address from the refresh address counter 74 and the refresh block address from the refresh block address generation circuit 76 for timing adjustment, and generates a refresh address REFAD. This refresh address REFAD is applied to the row decoder via the row address buffer.

  FIG. 19 shows an example of the configuration of refresh block address generation circuit 76 shown in FIG. In FIG. 19, the refresh block address generation circuit 76 includes a most significant position detection circuit 80 for detecting the most significant “1” bit position among the data holding block specific bits DBH0 to DBH1, and a register corresponding to each memory block. A shift register 82 with a bypass function that is initially set by the most significant position detection circuit 80 and performs a shift operation in accordance with the count-up signal and the data holding area bits DBH0 to DBH1, and an output of the shift register 82 with the bypass function It includes a block address register circuit 84 that sequentially selects block addresses in accordance with signals and generates a refresh block address RFBAD. In this shift register with a bypass function, the output of the final stage is fed back to the input of the first register stage so as to perform a shift operation on the ring.

  The most significant position detection circuit 80 is configured by a normal detection circuit, and detects the position of the highest “1” among the bits DBH0 to DBH7. When these bits DBH0 to DBH7 are “1”, the corresponding memory block is designated as a data holding area.

  The shift register 82 with a bypass function has a register stage arranged corresponding to each memory block, and the register stage corresponding to the memory block at the highest position among the data holding blocks is initially set to “1”. Is done. This shift register with a bypass function selectively performs a shift operation according to the corresponding bits DBH0 to DBH7. In other words, if the corresponding memory block is not designated as the data holding area, the corresponding register stage is skipped and the shift operation is performed between the register stages corresponding to the memory block specified in the data holding area. To do.

  The block address register circuit 84 stores a block address (3 bits) corresponding to each memory block, and outputs a corresponding block address when an output signal from the shift register 82 with a bypass function becomes H level.

  FIG. 20 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of one register stage of the shift register 82 with a bypass function.

  In the shift register 82 with the bypass function, the output of the last register stage is fed back to the first register stage.

  FIG. 20 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of one register stage of the shift register 82 with a bypass function. In FIG. 20, the register stage performs transfer operation using the AND circuit 82a receiving the data holding block specific bit DBHi and the count-up signal CUP, and the output signal of the AND circuit 82a as a clock signal, and is supplied from the previous register stage. It includes a latch circuit 82b that takes in data and transfers it to the next stage, and a transfer gate 82c that short-circuits the input and output of the latch circuit 82b in accordance with the data holding block specific bit DBHi. Here, i is a natural number from 0 to 7, and indicates the memory block MBi.

  The latch circuit 82b is set in accordance with the corresponding highest position detection signal MHPi from the highest position detection circuit 80, and the corresponding selection signal SELi is set to the H level when set. When data holding area bit DBHi is at H level (“1”), transfer gate 82c is in a conductive state, and AND circuit 82a generates an output signal in accordance with count-up signal CUP and supplies it to the latch circuit. Therefore, in this case, latch circuit 82b performs a signal transfer operation. On the other hand, when the data holding block specific bit DBHi is “0” (L level), the transfer gate 82c becomes conductive, while the output signal of the AND circuit 82a is at L level, and the latch circuit 82b has the transfer gate 82c. So that the shift operation is not performed. In this case, the corresponding most significant bit position detection signal MHPi is at the L level, and the selection signal SELi always maintains the L level. As a result, the block address can be activated only for the data holding area specified by the data holding block specifying bits DBH0 to DBH7.

  Note that when the shift function-added register 82 with the bypass function is initially set according to the output signal of the most significant position detection circuit 80, this initial setting is executed at the time of software reset operation or DBH write operation. This generates a one-shot pulse at the time of software reset or DBH write, and initializes the shift register 82 with a bypass function in accordance with the output signal MHPi of the highest position detection circuit 80.

  FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of block address register circuit 84 shown in FIG. In FIG. 21, block address register circuit 76 outputs register circuits RG0-RG7 according to selection signals SEL1-SEL7 from register circuits RG0-RG7 for storing the block addresses of memory blocks MB0-MB7 and a shift register with a bypass function. Select gates TX1-TX7 for selecting a signal and generating a refresh block address RFBAD are included. These select gates TX1-TX7 are provided corresponding to register circuits RG0-RG7, respectively. One of selection signals SEL1-SEL7 is maintained in the active state, and one of the block addresses stored in register circuits RG0-RG7 is selected as a refresh block address.

  In the above-described configuration, a refresh block address is generated by the block address register circuit 84, this refresh block address is given to the row decoder via the row address buffer, and a decoding operation is performed there. However, the selection signals SEL1-SEL7 may be used as memory row block selection signals, respectively. That is, instead of the row block selection signal for specifying the memory block in the output signal from the row decoder, the selection signals SEL1-SEL7 are used as the row block selection signal for refresh, and the refresh row is selected in the selected memory row block. It may be configured such that a decoding operation for selecting is performed.

[Embodiment 2]
FIG. 22 schematically shows a configuration of a main part of the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 22 shows a configuration of a main part of command mode detection circuit 30 shown in FIG.

  In the command mode detection circuit 30 shown in FIG. 22, a 2-bit counter 30i is provided instead of the shift register 30b shown in FIG. Counter 30i counts the output signal of gate circuit 30g receiving decode signal FAD and read mode instruction signal φrz. Gate circuit 30m receiving decode signal FAD and read instruction signal φrz, and gate circuit 30n receiving the output signal of gate circuit 30m and write mode instruction signal φwz are provided for resetting counter 30i.

  Gate circuit 30g outputs an H level signal when decode signal FAD is at H level and read instruction signal φrz is at L level. That is, the gate circuit 30g detects that a read access to the final address is performed.

  Gate circuit 30m outputs an H level signal when decode signal FAD is at L level and read instruction signal is at L level. That is, gate circuit 30m outputs an H level signal when a read access is made to an address other than the final address.

  When the output signal of gate circuit 30m becomes H level or write instruction signal φwz becomes L level, gate circuit 30n outputs an H level signal and resets counter 30i. Therefore, counter 30i resets its count value when reading is performed on an address other than the final address or when data is written.

  The carry bit CAR of the counter 30i is stored in the register circuit 35 (flip-flop) shown in FIG.

  In the configuration shown in FIG. 22, gate circuit 30g detects a read access to the embroidery address in accordance with decode signal FAD and read mode instruction signal φrz, and outputs a signal at H level when the read access to this final address is performed. Output. The counter 30i counts the rising edge of the output signal of the gate circuit 30g. Therefore, the counter 30i counts the number of times that the read access is continuously performed to the final address.

  On the other hand, at the time of data reading, when decode signal FAD is at L level, the output signal of gate circuit 30n is at H level and counter 30i is reset. When data writing is performed, write mode instruction signal φwz becomes L level, and similarly, counter 30i is reset by gate circuit 30n.

  Therefore, when a read access is continuously made a predetermined number of times to this final address, counter 30i sets its carry bit (carry bit) CAR to H level, register (flip-flop) 30f is set, and command mode Is set.

  In the case of the configuration shown in FIG. 22, the counter 30i can be configured by a two-stage D latch, and the circuit occupation area can be reduced as compared with a configuration using a data register using a data register.

[Other embodiments]
In the above description, the final address is read four times consecutively to enter the command mode. In this case, the data at the final address is read out to the outside. Data is simply read out, and no data destruction occurs. However, when the data stored at the final address may be destroyed, the read mode and the write mode may be appropriately combined and performed a predetermined number of times as the operation at the time of command mode entry. . For the command mode entry, an operation sequence different from the operation sequence performed in the normal operation mode may be executed.

  Further, the specific address is not limited to the final address, and may be an arbitrary address such as a head address or an intermediate address. The final address is used less frequently in the normal operation mode, and the command mode entry mode and the normal operation mode can be easily and reliably distinguished by continuously accessing such an infrequently used address a predetermined number of times. I can do things.

  The semiconductor memory device may be a semiconductor memory device that stores 1-bit data in two DRAM cells. In other words, complementary memory cell data is always read from the paired bit lines, and the read voltage between the bit lines is set to a value twice as large as when 1-bit memory cells are used for 1-bit data storage. In this case, the refresh interval can be made longer.

  As the command mode entry, an arbitrary operation sequence that is not used in the normal operation mode may be used instead of the sequence for designating the last address and performing read or write access. That is, a sequence in which a specific address signal and a specific data bit are set to a certain combination state and reading or writing is continuously performed may be used as the command mode entry mode.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Semiconductor memory device, 2 Memory cell array, 12 Internal control signal generation circuit, 20 mode control circuit, 22 State control circuit, 30 Command mode detection circuit, 32 Mode decode circuit, 30a Address decode circuit, 30d Shifter, 30f Register (flip-flop ), 30b Read mode detection circuit, 30c Write mode detection circuit, 40 I / O buffer, 41 Input buffer, 42, 43, 44, 45 NAND circuit, 46 Bus switching circuit, 47 Shift register, 48 Command decoder, 49 Command set Circuit, 60a OR circuit, 60b set / reset flip-flop, 60c power transistor, 62 memory power line, 62a power-on detection circuit, 52b gate circuit, 54 reset transistor, 70 data holding register Motor, 72 a refresh control circuit, 74 a refresh address counter, 76 a refresh block address generator.

Claims (3)

A semiconductor memory device that is accessed according to a predetermined signal pattern input to a plurality of external signal terminals during a normal operation mode,
Generates a signal to transition to command mode from the normal operation mode in response to input of the predetermined signal pattern different signal patterns to said plurality of external signal terminals, external signal number before Kifuku in the Command Mode The first signal pattern input from the terminal address and the data terminal is decoded to generate a signal for setting the inside to a low power consumption state, and the second signal pattern input from the address and data terminal is decoded comprising a mode control circuit for generating a signal to transition to the normal mode the semiconductor memory device from the command standby state for accepting a command in the command mode Te, semiconductor memory device. In addition to the command standby state, the mode control circuit includes a power-down mode for specifying the interruption of internal power supply, a wake-up mode for completing the power-down mode, a reset mode for setting the internal state to an initial state, and data retention 2. The semiconductor memory device according to claim 1, wherein one of a mode for designating a data holding area in the mode and an exit mode for transitioning from the command mode to the normal mode are activated. 2. The semiconductor memory device according to claim 1, wherein said command mode is designated when an access sequence different from an access sequence performed in said normal operation mode is performed.

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