NAND04GA3C2A STMICROELECTRONICS [STMicroelectronics], NAND04GA3C2A Datasheet - Page 29

• Manufacturer Part Number: NAND04GA3C2A
• Description: 4Gbit, 2112 Byte Page, 3V, Multi-level NAND Flash Memory
• Manufacturer: STMICROELECTRONICS [STMicroelectronics]

NAND04GA3C2A, NAND04GW3C2A
9
9.1
9.2
Software algorithms
This section gives information on the software algorithms that ST recommends to implement
to manage the Bad Blocks and extend the lifetime of the NAND device.
NAND Flash memories are programmed and erased by Fowler-Nordheim tunneling using a
high voltage. Exposing the device to a high voltage for extended periods can cause the
oxide layer to be damaged. For this reason, the number of program and erase cycles is
limited (see
Wear-Leveling and Error Correction Code algorithms to extend the number of program and
erase cycles and increase the data retention.
To help integrate a NAND memory into an application ST Microelectronics can provide a File
System OS Native reference software, which supports the basic commands of file
management.
Contact the nearest ST Microelectronics sales office for more details.
Bad block management
Devices with Bad Blocks have the same quality level and the same AC and DC
characteristics as devices where all the blocks are valid. A Bad Block does not affect the
performance of valid blocks because it is isolated from the bit line and common source line
by a select transistor.
The devices are supplied with all the locations inside valid blocks erased (FFh). The Bad
Block Information is written prior to shipping. Any block, where the 1st Byte in the spare area
of the last page, does not contain FFh, is a Bad Block.
The Bad Block Information must be read before any erase is attempted as the Bad Block
Information may be erased. For the system to be able to recognize the Bad Blocks based on
the original information it is recommended to create a Bad Block table following the
flowchart shown in
Block replacement
Over the lifetime of the device additional Bad Blocks may develop. In this case the block has
to be replaced by copying the data to a valid block. These additional Bad Blocks can be
identified as attempts to program or erase them will give errors in the Status Register.
As the failure of a page program operation does not affect the data in other pages in the
same block, the block can be replaced by re-programming the current data and copying the
rest of the replaced block to an available valid block.
Refer to
operation.
Table 13
Table 14
for the recommended procedure to follow if an error occurs during an
Figure 11.
for value) and it is recommended to implement Garbage Collection,
9 Software algorithms
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