Measurement system for a preliminary characterization of flash memory cells for multilevel applications

In this work a low-cost measurement system suitable for analog characteriza tion of standard Flash memory cells is presented. Our aim, with this system , is to investigate the possibility of using standard cells for multilevel storage, to increase the bit density of conventional memory devices. Prelim inary investigation was carried out by using a measurement system based on stand-alone instrumentation linked to a controller via IEEE 488 bus, The pr eliminary characterization results of the Texas Instruments TMS29FO40 4-Mbi t Flash Memory show that it is feasible to store and retrieve information w ith four levels of injection charge in a single cell. Currently, a first mu ltilevel test chip is under development. At the same time, a new measuremen t system, specifically suited to debug and test this special device, is und er implementation.