Thermal monitoring of memory resources

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2019107871-A1
Application number	US-201816147950-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 1, 2018
Priority date	Aug 27, 2015
Publication date	Apr 11, 2019
Grant date	—

Abstract

Data reliability and integrity may be compromised when memory resources used to store the data reach elevated temperatures. A sensor in the memory resource may monitor the temperature of the memory resource in real-time. A comparator in the memory resource may indicate a high temperature condition to a memory controller. The memory controller, in response to the high temperature condition, can restrict or halt data flow to the memory resource. When the real-time temperature of the memory resource falls below a defined threshold, the memory controller may resume data flow to the memory resource.

First claim

1 . (canceled)

2 . A system comprising:
a memory device including:
a thermal sensor to measure a temperature of the memory device;
a first register to store a value to indicate a high temperature threshold;
a second register to store a second value to indicate a thermal state of the memory device;
an output pin to couple with memory controller circuitry, the output pin to indicate an alert;
comparator circuitry to:
compare the measured temperature of the memory device with the high temperature threshold,
in response to a determination that the measured temperature of the memory device is greater than or equal to the high temperature threshold:
write data indicative of a high temperature condition to the second register, and
assert a first logic value on the output pin to indicate the high temperature condition to the controller; and
the memory controller circuitry to, in response to assertion of the first logic value on the output pin:
read the second register of the memory device and second registers of one or more other memory devices coupled with the memory controller circuitry to identify which of multiple memory devices has a high temperature condition, and
restrict data flow to or from the identified memory devices.

3 . The system of claim 2 , wherein:
output pins of the multiple memory devices are logical OR'ed together.

4 . The system of claim 2 , wherein:
in response to a determination that the measured temperature of the memory device is less than the high temperature threshold, the comparator circuitry is to:
write data indicative of an absence of the high temperature condition to the second register, and
assert a second logic value on the output pin to indicate the absence of the high temperature condition to the memory controller circuitry.

5 . The system of claim 4 , wherein:
the memory controller circuitry is to increase data flow to or from the identified memory devices in response to receipt of an indication that the measured temperature of the memory devices is less than the high temperature threshold.

6 . The system of claim 5 , wherein:
the increase of data flow to or from the identified memory devices includes an increase of the volume of data transmitted to or from the identified memory devices and/or an increase of a speed of transmission of data to or from the identified memory devices.

7 . The system of claim 2 , wherein:
restriction of the data flow to or from the identified memory devices includes a reduction of the volume of data transmitted to or from the identified memory devices and/or a reduction of a speed of transmission of data to or from the identified memory devices.

8 . The system of claim 2 , wherein:
the memory controller circuitry to restrict the data flow is to: decrease data flow in stepwise increments based on the measured temperature of a given memory device.

9 . The system of claim 8 , wherein:
the memory controller circuitry is to restrict the data flow in the stepwise increments over a range and inversely proportional to the measured temperature of the given memory device.

10 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the memory device comprises one or more of:
a phase change memory (PCM), a byte addressable memory, a three-dimensional ( 3 D) cross point memory, a resistive memory, a nanowire memory, a ferro-electric transistor random access memory (FeTRAM), a magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM), a spin transfer torque (STT) MRAM, and a random access non-volatile memory.

11 . A memory controller comprising:
a communications interface coupled with a plurality of memory devices, the communications interface to:
receive a signal indicative of a high temperature condition from at least one of the plurality of memory devices;
in response to receipt of the signal: send a command to each of the plurality of memory devices to read a register of the respective memory device, the register to store a value to indicate a thermal state of the respective memory device; and
control circuitry to:
identify which of the plurality of memory devices has the high temperature condition based on data read from the register of each of the plurality of memory devices; and
restrict data flow to or from the identified memory devices;
wherein each of the plurality of memory devices includes a thermal sensor to measure a temperature of the memory device, the register, and comparator circuitry to:
compare the measured temperature of the respective memory device with a high temperature threshold,
in response to a determination that the measured temperature of the memory device is greater than or equal to the high temperature threshold:
write data indicative of a high temperature condition to the register, and
assert a first logic value on an output pin to indicate the high temperature condition, output pins of the plurality of memory devices to be logical OR'ed together to provide the signal to the communications interface of the memory controller.

12 . The memory controller of claim 11 , wherein:
the control circuitry is to increase data flow to or from the identified memory devices in response to receipt of an indication that the measured temperature of the memory devices is less than the high temperature threshold.

13 . The memory controller of claim 12 , wherein:
the increase of data flow to or from the identified memory devices includes an increase of the volume of data transmitted to or from the identified memory devices and/or an increase of a speed of transmission of data to or from the identified memory devices.

14 . The memory controller of claim 11 , wherein:
restriction of the data flow to or from the identified memory devices includes a reduction of the volume of data transmitted to or from the identified memory devices and/or a reduction of a speed of transmission of data to or from the identified memory devices.

15 . The memory controller of claim 11 , wherein:
the control circuitry to restrict the data flow is to: decrease data flow in stepwise increments based on the measured temperature of a given memory device.

16 . A memory device comprising:
a thermal sensor to measure a temperature of the memory device; a first register to store a value to indicate a high temperature threshold; a second register to store a second value to indicate a thermal state of the memory device; an output pin to couple with memory controller circuitry, the output pin to indicate an alert; the comparator circuitry to:
compare, with the comparator circuit, the measured temperature of the memory device with the high temperature threshold,
in response to a determination that the measured temperature of the memory device is greater than or equal to the high temperature threshold:
write data indicative of a high temperature condition to the second register, and
assert a first logic value on the pin to indicate the high temperature condition to the memory controller circuitry; and

wherein, in response to assertion of the first logic value on the pin, the memory controller circuitry is to:
read the second register of the memory device and second registers of one or more other memory devices coupled with the memory controller circuitry to identify which of multiple memory devices has a high temperature condition, and
restrict data flow to or from identified memory devices.

17 . The memory device of claim 16 , wherein:
in response to a determination that the measured temperature of the memory device is less than the high temperature threshold, the comparator circ

Assignees

• Intel Corp

Inventors

• Sundaram Rajesh
• Swaminathan Muthukumar P
• Rivers Doyle

Classifications

• G06F11/3058

  Monitoring arrangements for monitoring environmental properties or parameters of the computing system or of the computing system component, e.g. monitoring of power, currents, temperature, humidity, position, vibrations (thermal management in cooling arrangements of a computing system G06F1/206) · CPC title

• G06F1/20

  Cooling means · CPC title

• G06F1/3225

  of memory devices · CPC title

• G06F1/3275

  Power saving in memory, e.g. RAM, cache · CPC title

• G06F1/206 Primary

  comprising thermal management · CPC title