Embedded DRAM: more than just a memory

Dynamic random access memory has been a viable semiconductor storage medium for more than three decades. Surprisingly, it has only been in the past three years that attempts to combine DRAM with meaningful amounts of Boolean logic, on the same substrate, have occurred. Although much fanfare has accompanied this technological breakthrough, commonly referred to as embedded DRAM, few system designers appreciate the complexity of this new technology, let alone its applicability to other circuit forms. This article provides background information about embedded DRAM technology, provide suggestions on how structural and electrical elements of the embedded DRAM era might be reused in other circuits, and review circuit theory that is directly attributed to the DRAM technology progression