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Yielding optimized dependability assurance through bit inversion.
- Source :
-
Integration: The VLSI Journal . Jan2019, Vol. 64, p105-113. 9p. - Publication Year :
- 2019
-
Abstract
- Abstract Phase change memory (PCM) is a promising alternative to conventional DRAM main memories, due to its read performance, density, and nonvolatility and resulting low static energy. Unfortunately, reliability is still a significant challenge as limited write endurance, exacerbated by process variation, leads to increasing numbers of stuck-at faults over the memory's lifetime. This includes a significant number of stuck-at faults that appear early in the memory's service. Error-correcting Pointers (ECP) is a popular proposal to mitigate stuck-at faults in PCM by recording the addresses and the values of faulty bits in order to extend the lifetime of the memory. We propose a method to extend the effectiveness of ECP coverage called Yoda, which utilizes a small number of additional encoding bits in order to dramatically improve the effectiveness and fault correction capability of ECP. By adding one additional bit to ECP which corrects f faults, Yoda can correct 2 f +1 faults. Further improvements are possible introducing small numbers additional bits. Our simulation results demonstrate that Yoda has a 3.0× improvement in fault coverage compared to a fault-aware ECP with a similar overhead, while also providing a 2.5–3.0× improvement over state-of-the-art schemes with comparable complexity. Furthermore, Yoda provides a method to protect the auxiliary bits, also with a small overhead. By adding one auxiliary bit to protect the auxiliary bits, Yoda can achieve extra improvement. Highlights • Extending pointers with partition and flip methods improve guaranteed correction capabilities. • Using small additional computational overhead decreases the number of required encoding bits. • Applying partition and flip to the auxiliary bits can allow them to operate reliably in faulty memory. • Yoda improves tolerated faults by 2.5–3.0× compared to state-of-the-art designs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 01679260
- Volume :
- 64
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Integration: The VLSI Journal
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 132991992
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vlsi.2018.09.002