Motorola Produces World's First 4 Mbit MRAM Chip

TECH SPACE

file photo of an MRAM chip

Chandler - Oct 28, 2003
Motorola, Inc. has produced the world's first 4 megabit (Mbit) magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM) chip. Select customers are currently evaluating samples of this advanced memory technology. This technology milestone is further evidence of the viability of MRAM, which potentially can replace multiple existing memory technologies.

"The fact that Motorola has demonstrated a 4Mb MRAM chip based on a 0.18-micron technology is great news for the industry," said Bob Merritt, vice president of Emerging Technologies with Semico Research Corporation.

"This is a significant advancement since Motorola's June 2002 demonstration of a 1Mb MRAM using 0.60-micron technology. That's like stepping over four or five process generations in little more than a year."

MRAM combines non-volatility with incredible endurance and speed. In many appliances, electronics systems, and consumer devices, MRAM could replace multiple memory devices. Designers may benefit from reduced system complexity, lower overall system cost, and improved performance.

MRAM's reliability and long-life may make it well-suited for applications in harsh environments or requiring long system life such as automotive and industrial. Recognizing MRAM's potential, Honeywell recently licensed Motorola's MRAM technology for military and aerospace applications.

"For the past several years, Motorola has led the industry in MRAM development with 256kb, 1Mbit and now 4Mbit devices," said Dr. Claudine Simson, chief technology officer, Motorola's Semiconductor Products Sector.

"Our 4Mb MRAM chip not only showcases our technology, it will accelerate the industry's acceptance of MRAM technology. We've made significant progress toward establishing a solid MRAM manufacturing technology capability. We're now working with lead customers on performance refinements for future market introduction and broader sampling next year."

MRAM could initially enter the market in applications that require speed, reliability and low power. MRAM is suited for applications that value the ability to do high-performance writes with unlimited read-write endurance, low write energy and/or data retention with no energy. In several instances, MRAM could lower the number of component parts and provide more reliability and competitive system cost to the customer.

TECH SPACE

New Hybrid Material Has Potential Use In Microelectronics

Toronto - Oct 13, 2003
U of T scientists have developed a new class of hybrid materials combining organic and inorganic elements that could lead to improved computer chips, among other applications.

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