Renesas Electronics Corporation has released two new series of Advanced Low Power SRAM (Advanced LP SRAM), the leading type of low-power-consumption SRAM, designed to provide enhanced reliability and longer backup battery life for applications such as factory automation, industrial equipment, and the smart grid. Fabricated using the 110-nanometer process, the new RMLV1616A Series of 16-megabit devices and the RMWV3216A Series of 32 Mb devices feature an innovative memory cell technology that dramatically improves reliability and contributes to longer battery operation.
Renesas' Advanced LP SRAM devices feature exclusive technology in their memory cells that achieves soft error resistance over 500 times that of conventional Full CMOS memory cells. This makes it desirable for use in fields requiring high reliability, including FA, measurement devices, smart grid-related devices, and industrial equipment, in addition to many other fields, such as consumer devices, office equipment, and communication devices.
In the Renesas Advanced LP SRAM structure, a stacked capacitor is added to each memory node within the memory cells. This configuration suppresses the generation of soft errors to a level that is effectively soft error free. In addition, the load transistor (P-channel) of each SRAM cell is a polysilicon thin-film transistor (TFT) that is stacked on top of the N-channel MOS transistor formed on the silicon. Only the N-channel MOS transistor is formed on the silicon substrate below. This means that no parasitic thyristors are formed in the memory area and theoretically makes latch-up impossible. Therefore, the Advanced LP SRAM is well suited to applications requiring high reliability, such as FA, measurement devices, smart grid related devices, traffic systems, and industrial equipment.
The standby current of the new RMLV1616A Series and RMWV3216A Series is only 0.5 ?A (typical) for 16 Mb devices and 1 ?A (typical) for 32 Mb devices. These low current consumption levels are less than half the levels of comparable earlier Renesas SRAM products, making it possible to extend the service life of backup batteries. The minimum power supply voltage when retaining data is 1.5 V, lower than the 2.0 V of comparable earlier Renesas products. This helps customers designing systems that retain data using battery power.
The 16 Mb RMLV1616A Series is available in three packages: 48-ball FBGA, 48-pin TSOP, and 52-pin µTSOP, allowing customers to select the package that best matches their application. The 32 Mb RMWV3216A Series is available in a 48-ball FBGA package.
Samples of the RMLV1616A Series and RMWV3216A Series will be available in September. Pricing varies depending on capacity. For example, the 16 Mb RMLV1616A Series is priced at US$16.50 per unit, and the 32 Mb RMWV3216A Series at US$31 per unit.