Samsung today announced that it has developed a prototype fusion
memory chip that can significantly increase the data processing
speed between processors in mobile applications.
Samsung's new fusion solution OneDRAM is expected to be specified
in the design of handsets, game consoles and in other digital
applications, especially those that use 3-dimensional graphics.
The 133MHz 512Mb device incorporates a dual-port approach to
increase the time that it takes to transfer data between
processors. Data managed by the processors is housed in a shared
bank where the space for storing data can be adjusted
accordingly. This meets the JEDEC low power double-data-rate
(LPDDR) memory standard.
Due to rapidly increasing demand for multimedia features in
mobile applications, designers have been specifying the use of
two separate processors ? a communication processor and a media
processor. The new OneDRAM will channel data between the
processors through a single chip eliminating the need to also
specify DRAM and SRAM chips for buffer memory.
"Along with the faster data processing speeds between the
processors, the OneDRAM reduces power consumption by 30 percent,
lessens the number of chips needed and minimizes area coverage by
50 percent, resulting in a five-fold increase in the speed of
cell phone and gaming console operations, longer battery life and
slimmer handset designs," said Samsung in a statement.
A single OneDRAM can replace, at least, two mobile memories in
smart phones and other multimedia-rich handsets.
Samsung expects its OneDRAM to be introduced in handsets by the
second half of 2007.
NAND flash memory
In related news, Dr. Chang-Gyu Hwang, president and CEO of
Samsung Electronics' Semiconductor Business, presented a paper
that focuses on the development of NAND flash memory based on
charge trap flash (CTF) technology, at the plenary session of
the 2006 International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM).
NAND flash memory based on charge trap flash (CTF) technology is
expected to be the basis for producing 32-gigabit NAND memory in
the near future using 40-nanometer process technology, Hwang
said.