Product category:
Memory Devices and Modules
News Release from: Spansion | Subject: MirrorBit Quad
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 23 January 2007
Flash memories store 4bit per cell
Companies in the gaming and electronic content industry segments are designing the industry's first 4bit-per-cell MirrorBit Flash memory solution into products planned for production this quarter.
Spansion has announced the first family of MirrorBit Quad solutions, designed to enable the rapid and cost-effective proliferation of Flash-based content delivery for books, games, movies, music, photos and other digital-rich content Leading companies in the gaming and electronic content industry segments are designing the industry's first 4bit-per-cell MirrorBit Flash memory solution into products planned for production this quarter
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 27 Sep 2006 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Novel architecture doubles Flash density
Spansion has demonstrated working silicon of the industry's first 4bit-per-cell Flash memory technology, produced at its Fab 25 production facility in Austin, Texas.
Flash features in FPGA development
Spansion Flash memory is an integral part of the new Avnet Xilinx Spartan-3A reference board, providing configuration storage as well as code and data storage.
MirrorBit Quad technology stores 4bit per cell - twice the bits per cell of any Flash memory technology-and offers a lower cost structure and smaller die size than comparable memory solutions available today.
The first MirrorBit Quad products feature densities from 256Mbit to 2Gbit.
Due to the cost structure and density range, Spansion can enable a new generation of content distribution and replace CDs, DVDs or read only memories (ROM) for the distribution of multimedia content.
Further reading
Flash memories cut handset design costs
MirrorBit Eclipse architecture-based MCPs offer exceptional user experience in mid- to high-end mobile phone platforms.
Next-generation ORNAND targets NAND applications
MirrorBit ORNAND2 architecture will use a SONOS-like memory cell connected in a NAND memory array at 45nm, featuring fast write performance with high packing density.
NOR Flash is ready for Chinese handset designs
Prequalification of Flash memory will enable manufacturers to get cost-effective, high-performance phones to market faster in China and other high-growth regions.
With MirrorBit Quad solutions, Spansion is addressing an untapped market opportunity by advancing technology nodes and providing the lower densities and cost structure required for digital content that currently are not provided by NAND Flash memory providers.
"Spansion is addressing consumers' increasing requirements for digitally rich content delivered in convenient and cost-effect system solutions", said Hans Wildenberg, Executive Vice President of Spansion's Media Storage Division.
"With the first MirrorBit Quad solutions, Spansion is continuing its commitment to bring our customers the added-value solutions they need to create new and differentiated products and get them to market quickly".
The initial MirrorBit Quad products are being produced at 90nm in Spansion's Fab 25 manufacturing facility in Austin and are designed to be drop-in compatible with other industry-standard NAND products, allowing manufacturers to transition seamlessly - simplifying the design-in process, lowering costs and saving time.
The small die size of Spansion's MirrorBit Quad 2Gbit single-die solution can fit in all major card form-factors, including the popular microSD format.
Spansion plans to announce 65nm MirrorBit Quad products later this year targeted for removable applications such as digital film, MP3, game cartridges and USB Flash drives.
The company also plans to leverage the MirrorBit Quad technology for integrated applications such as e-books and GPS navigation systems.
"Innovation and differentiation in the market place are keys to a manufacturer's ability to maintain and expand its customer base", said Geoff MacGillivray, Lead Memory Analyst for Semiconductor Insights.
"With Spansion's proven nitride-based MirrorBit technology as the foundation, the 4bit-per-cell MirrorBit Quad product provides an avenue for lowering costs and bringing Spansion's Flash memory to new applications".
MirrorBit Quad technology, as with Spansion's 2bit-per-cell MirrorBit technology, stores charges in two distinct locations on a nonconducting nitride storage medium to deliver fundamental cost, quality and manufacturing advantages over floating-gate technology.
MirrorBit technology has two storage locations per cell and MirrorBit Quad stores 2bit per storage location.
Due to the increased storage capacity per cell, MirrorBit Quad technology is capable of delivering up to 30% smaller effective cell size per bit than floating-gate MLC NAND Flash memory technology at the same process technology node.
• Spansion: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Electronicstalk email newsletter
• Electronicstalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
