Unit 6: Programmable Logic

Devices
Prepared by, Dr S C Tamane
UNIT VI
 Programmable Logic Devices:
 Semiconductor memories,
 RAM, ROM,
 EPROM, EEPROM,
 NVRAM, SRAM, DRAM,
 PLA, PAL,
 Memory System design
Books
 Text Books:
1. R.P. Jain, “Modern Digital Electronics”, Tata McGraw Hill Publication, 4th Edition, 2010.
2. M. M. Mano, “Digital Logic and Computer Design”, Prentice Hall of India Publication, 4 th
Edition, 2006.

 Reference Books:
1. D. P. Leach, A. P. Malvino, G. Saha, “Digital Principles and Applications”, Tata McGraw Hill
Publication, 8th Edition, 1993.
2. Comer, “Digital Logic & State Machine Design”, Oxford Universities Press, 3rd Edition, 2014

 E-Sources:
 NPTEL videos
Contents
• Programmable Logic Devices:
• Semiconductor memories,
• RAM,
• ROM,
• EPROM,
• EEPROM,
• NVRAM,
• SRAM,
• DRAM,
• PLA,
• PAL,
• Memory System design.
Semiconductor Memory
• Semiconductor memory is a digital electronic data storage device,
often used as computer memory, implemented with semiconductor
electronic devices on an integrated circuit (IC).
• Different types of implementations are available.
• Most types of semiconductor memory have the property of random
access.
RAM
• RAM (Random-access memory) can be used to write/read the data.
• Volatile memory loses its stored data when the power to the memory
chip is turned off.
• However it can be faster and less expensive than non-volatile
memory.
RAM
• Major types of RAM are:
• DRAM (Dynamic random-access memory) which uses memory cells
consisting of one capacitor and one transistor to store each bit.
• This is the cheapest and highest in density, so it is used for the main
memory in computers.
• However the electric charge that stores the data in the memory cells
slowly leaks out, so the memory cells must be periodically refreshed
(rewritten) which requires additional circuitry.
• The refresh process is handled internally by the computer and is
transparent to its user.
RAM
• FPM DRAM (Fast page mode DRAM) An older type of asynchronous
DRAM that improved on previous types by allowing repeated
accesses to a single "page" of memory to occur at a faster rate.
• Used in the mid-1990s.
• EDO DRAM (Extended data out DRAM) An older type of
asynchronous DRAM which had faster access time than earlier types
by being able to initiate a new memory access while data from the
previous access was still being transferred.
• Used in the later part of the 1990s.
SRAM
• SRAM (Static random-access memory) which relies on several
transistors forming a digital flip-flop to store each bit.
• This is less dense and more expensive per bit than DRAM, but faster
and does not require memory refresh.
• It is used for smaller cache memories in computers.
ROM
• ROM (Read-only memory) This is designed to hold permanent data, and in
normal operation is only read from, not written to.
• Although many types can be written to, the writing process is slow and
usually all the data in the chip must be rewritten at once.
• It is usually used to store system software which must be immediately
accessible to the computer, such as the BIOS program which starts the
computer, and the software (microcode) for portable devices and
embedded computers such as microcontrollers.
• Mask programmed ROM In this type the data is programmed into the chip
during manufacture, so it is only used for large production runs.
• It cannot be rewritten with new data.
EPROM, EEPROM
• PROM (Programmable read-only memory) In this type the data is written into the chip before it
is installed in the circuit, but it can only be written once.
• The data is written by plugging the chip into a device called a PROM programmer.

• EPROM (Erasable programmable read-only memory) In this type the data in it can be rewritten
by removing the chip from the circuit board, exposing it to an ultraviolet light to erase the existing
data, and plugging it into a PROM programmer.
• The IC package has a small transparent "window" in the top to admit the UV light.
• It is often used for prototypes and small production run devices, where the program in it may
have to be changed at the factory.

• EEPROM (Electrically erasable programmable read-only memory) In this type the data can be
rewritten electrically, while the chip is on the circuit board, but the writing process is slow.
• This type is used to hold firmware, the low level microcode which runs hardware devices, such as
the BIOS program in most computers, so that it can be updated.
NVRAM
• NVRAM (Flash memory) In this type the writing process is
intermediate in speed between EEPROMS and RAM memory; it can
be written to, but not fast enough to serve as main memory.
• It is often used as a semiconductor version of a hard disk, to store
files.
• It is used in portable devices such as PDAs, USB flash drives, and
removable memory cards used in digital cameras and cellphones.
PLA and PAL
• A programmable logic array (PLA) is a kind of
programmable logic device used to implement
combinational logic circuits.
• The PLA has a set of programmable AND gate planes,
which link to a set of programmable OR gate planes,
which can then be conditionally complemented to
produce an output.
• It has 2^N AND Gates for N input variables and for M
outputs from PLA, there should be M OR Gates, each
with programmable inputs from all of the AND gates.
• This layout allows for a large number of logic functions
to be synthesized in the sum of products canonical
forms.
• PLAs differ from Programmable Array Logic devices
(PALs and GALs) in that both the AND and OR gate
planes are programmable.
Advantages over read-only memory
• The desired outputs for each combination of inputs could be programmed into a
read-only memory, with the inputs being loaded onto the address bus and the
outputs being read out as data.
• However, that would require a separate memory location for every possible
combination of inputs, including combinations that are never supposed to occur,
and also duplicating data for "don't care" conditions (for example, logic like "if
input A is 1, then, as far as output X is concerned, we don't care what input B is":
in a ROM this would have to be written out twice, once for each possible value of
B, and as more "don't care" inputs are added, the duplication grows
exponentially); therefore, a programmable logic array can often implement a
piece of logic using fewer transistors than the equivalent in read-only memory.
• This is particularly valuable when it is part of a processing chip where transistors
are scarce (for example, the original 6502 chip contained a PLA to direct various
operations of the processor).
Applications of PLA
• One application of a PLA is to implement the control over a datapath.
• It defines various states in an instruction set, and produces the next state (by conditional branching).
• [e.g. if the machine is in state 2, and will go to state 4 if the instruction contains an immediate field;
then the PLA should define the actions of the control in state 2, will set the next state to be 4 if the
instruction contains an immediate field, and will define the actions of the control in state 4].
• Programmable logic arrays should correspond to a state diagram for the system.
• Other commonly used programmable logic devices are PAL, CPLD and FPGA.
• Note that the use of the word "programmable" does not indicate that all PLAs are field-programmable;
in fact many are mask-programmed during manufacture in the same manner as a mask ROM.
• This is particularly true of PLAs that are embedded in more complex and numerous integrated circuits
such as microprocessors.
• PLAs that can be programmed after manufacture are called FPGA (Field-programmable gate array), or
less frequently FPLA (Field-programmable logic array).
• The Commodore 64 home computer released in 1982 used a "906114-01 PLA" to handle system signals.
Design with Memory
• Design with Memory is a value adding approach to Sustainable
Product Design and Architecture that was developed by Japanese
industrial design professional Fumikazu Masuda, professor at Tokyo
Zokei University, and American architect Tom Johnson as a design
criteria for use in the 5th and 6th rounds of the International Design
Resource Awards Competition (IDRA) between 1999-2003.
• Introduced at the time of rising global sustainability movement in the
90s, the term proposes a new way of looking at design with recycled,
re-used and sustainable materials and identifies 4 pathways to
approach design to achieve this result of added value.
Design with Memory
• The first mention of the term "Design with Memory" in the U.S. was in the
ARCADE magazine (1997).
• In an article discussing winning entries to the first 3 rounds of the
Competition Architect Johnson said, “We have come to call it 'Designing
with Memory' because sustainable design is based on the recognition of
our interdependent relationship with the natural world around us –
something we forgot when we had designed products and architecture
with the idea that their materials could be wasted and landfilled.
• It is also 'Designing with Memory' because it means thinking about where
the materials come from, how they are used, and where they will go next.
Design with Memory
• The first mention of the term “Design with Memory“ in Japan was at
the Japanese Design Research Center exhibit in Niigata, Japan (1999).
• With heightening global interest in sustainable development during
this time, the IDRA competitions organized under the theme of
Design with Memory were funded in part by the Japanese Ministry of
International Trade and Industry (MITI), and the exhibits in Japan
were part of a national program of design education with associated
seminars.
• It is said to be the first international design competition under the
theme of sustainability to be sponsored by the Japanese government.
Application
• The Japanese industrial design professor and American architect duo identified 4 pathways to
accomplish Designing with Memory and introduced them as focus categories in the 5th and 6th
rounds of IDRA Competition.
• Each pathway was illustrated through examples of award winning entries from the Competition:
• Design with Memory of the User - The goal is to reduce the amount of consumption by making
products useful and desirable for a longer period of time.
• The method employed is to develop a strong relationship between the user and the product.
• A winning entry example of this strategy was the GreenPeace Activist Bag.
• It used a smoked natural rubber material coated on used sugar sacks made by members of an
indigenous community in the Amazon delta as part of a carrier bag.
• Users knew every day that this product was made to make the native rubber trees more valuable
standing than cut down for grazing and thus helping support their local community.
• All parts of the bag were compostable, so when it did wear out, it could go back into the earth.
Application
• Design with Memory of the Material –This strategy is for finding successful
paths to re-use materials.
• Materials that are discarded can be a rich resource for new product
development.
• Adding value to the material through artistic design is the key to using them
successfully.
• A winning entry example of this strategy is the elegant baskets woven from
discarded industrial metal strapping.
• Design with Memory of the Product –The goal is to create a cycle of product,
and product re-use, into the future.
• A winning example of this approach is by a porcelain product company that
developed a way to regrind discarded and their broken porcelain products and
form it into a new product.
• To illustrate to the purchaser the nature of the product they incorporated their
traditional design motifs blended into the new forms.
Application
• Design with Memory of Nature - The goal with this strategy is to
make the product self-evidently integrating with natural cycles.
• A winning entry example of this strategy is the compostable computer
keyboard. Technological advances are rapid and cause plastic
products to be “out of date” quickly - leading to increased pressure
on recycling programs and landfills.
• To address this problem, the keyboard keys and body are instead
made from carrot and celery fibers bound with a starch based binder
– 100% compostable after the electronic sheet and chord are
removed.