Hynix Licenses ISi's Z-RAM Memory Technology for DRAM Products

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Innovative Silicon Inc. (ISi), the developer of Z-RAM high-density memory intellectual property, and Hynix Semiconductor announce that Hynix has agreed to license ISi's Z-RAM for use in its DRAM chips. Z-RAM-based DRAMs will use a single transistor bitcell – rather than a combination of transistors and capacitor elements – representing the first fundamental DRAM bitcell change since the invention of the DRAM in the early 1970s. Hynix has received the first-mover opportunity to bring Z-RAM to the DRAM market; and to ensure this advantage, the two companies have committed considerable engineering resources to work side-by-side on the program.

Z-RAM was initially developed as the world's lowest-cost embedded memory technology for logic-based ICs such as mobile chipsets, microprocessors, networking and other consumer applications. The technology was first licensed, in December 2005, by AMD for upcoming microprocessor designs. Now, the engagement with Hynix positions Z-RAM to become the lowest-cost memory technology in the greater than $30B memory market.

ISi's Z-RAM stands apart from today's standard DRAM and SRAM solutions as its single transistor bitcell architecture is the world's smallest memory cell, making it the highest density, and therefore world's lowest-cost semiconductor memory solution. Z-RAM's one transistor memory bitcell is made possible by harnessing the Floating Body Effect found in circuits fabricated using SOI wafers. Moreover, since Z-RAM takes advantage of a naturally-occurring SOI effect, Z-RAM does not require exotic process changes to build capacitors or other complex structures within the memory bitcell.

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