HOW EPROMs WORK?

This article is written with the philosophy that there is no such thing as a stupid question; only
stupid mistaes !rom not asing stupid questions" Things only seem complicated until you !igure
out how they wor# so lets dig in" $%! you are !amiliar with &inary# &its# &ytes# he'adecimal# and
()*%% you might want to sip the !irst section"+
What %s (ll This &its# &ytes# He'adecimal# Word# (nd ()*%%
)tu!! (&out?
Binary re!ers to base two or a two-state digit called a bit. ( bit is either on or o!! , represented as
a -.- !or on $the set state+ and -/- !or off $the cleared state+" Eight bits together !orm a byte and are
written as //.././.& $or sometimes 0//.././.+" The -&- stands !or binary, and lets you now
that we aren-t taling a&out ../#./.# the decimal num&er" ( &yte or multiples o! &ytes set the
register si1e !or microcomputers" Hexadecimal $hex) is a base 16 way o! representing one byte"
He'adecimal uses the digits /#.#2#3#4#5#6#7#8#9#(# :# *# ;# E# <" ( &yte requires =ust 2 hex digits"
Thus# <<h is a two he' digit representation o! a &yte" <<h is the same as ........& $the little -h-
designates a he'adecimal >alue sometimes a preceding -?- is used as in ?<<+
( word usually re!ers to two &ytes or .6 &its and can also re!er to a 32 &it or wide word" We are
!ast approaching the time when 64 bit words or doublewide words will &e common"
A!""# is a code that represents the letters and num&ers you can type on a computer ey&oard"
Each letter you press is represented &y a unique set o! 8 &its or one &yte"
EPROM )i1e Rating
EPROMs are rated in #-bits where # is equal to .#/24 and the EPROM num&er generally $&ut not
always+ re!lects the si1e" :ut when we tal a&out memory si1e# we spea in terms o! #-bytes" To
change &its to &ytes# simply di>ide the num&er o! &its &y 8 to get &ytes"
( couple o! e'amples will clear things up@
The 27.6 EPROM num&er ends in .6 and thus is .6 ,&its in si1e or .6 A .#/24 or .6#384 &its"
Bow# .6#384 &its di>ided &y 8 gi>es us 2#/48 &ytes or 2 ,&ytes" Thus a 27.6 is a .6 ,&it
EPROM# &ut is most o!ten e'pressed as &eing 2 ,&ytes in si1e"
)ome EPROMs are word wide or .6 &its $2 &ytes+ wide" These EPROMs are also rated in &its#
such as 27*./24 ; a . M,&it $Mega,&it+# .#/24 ,&its# .28 ,&ytes# or 64 ,word EPROM" )uch
EPROMs come in 4/ pin pacages to allow !or the e'tra pins needed"
What is a Rom?
$%& stands !or Read Only Memory" They are programmed at the !actory at the time o!
manu!acture with a special mas# thus called a mas#ed $%&" This is the cheapest way to
manu!acture ROMs once you need more than ./#/// at a time" The draw&ac is# i! there is e>en
one little &ug in the so!tware# that pile o! ./#/// ROMs &ecomes worthless" :e aware that some
mased ROMs are unreada&le &y EPROM programmers
What is a PROM?
'$%&s $Programmable Read Only Memory) consist o! an array o! !uses and thus can only &e
programmed one,time" Programming is accomplished with a current $instead o! a >oltage as are
EPROMs+ and requires a di!!erent type o! programmer"
What is an EPROM?
('$%&)Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) can &e programmed and erased ena&ling
them to &e re,used" Erasure is accomplished using an CD $Cltra Diolet+ light source that shines
through a quart1 erasing window in the EPROM pacage"
There also are %*' $One Time Programmable+ EPROMs# sometimes called OTPROMs $One
Time Programma&le Read Only Memory+# that are identical to an erasa&le EPROM &ut lac an
erasing window to reduce costs" To reduce the cost these EPROMs come in a windowless
+lastic carrier# which is cheaper than the costly ceramic +ac#age required !or the erasing
window"" They can &e programmed one time only# so these are used a!ter the code is &ug !ree"
What is an EEPROM?
(n (('$%& $Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory+ is similar to an EPROM
&ut the erasure is accomplished using an electric field instead o! an CD light source" This
eliminates the need o! a window" Csually# EEPROM re!ers to a de>ice that requires a
programmer or special >oltage to program it"
What is a <lash EPROM?
( flash EPROM is similar to an EEPROM e'cept that !lash EPROMs are erased all at once while
a regular EEROMs can erase one &ye at a time" "n- circuit writing and erasing is possi&le
&ecause no special >oltages are required" To accomplish in,circuit operation# you ha>e to write
special application so!tware routines" <lash EPROMs are also called non,olatile memory""
OK# )o tell me# =ust how does an EPROM wor?
EPROM memory cells use floating gate technology" ( floating gate is a gate with a special
capacitor !or its only electrical connection" This special capacitor taes on an electrical charge in
a quantum physics e!!ect called tunneling" The presence o! a charge determines the >alue $. or
/+ o! the memory cell. %n our e'ample &elow# a room with a >ery narrow door represents the
memory cell. People in the room represent electrons with their associated charge" These people
can only enter or e'it through a much too narrow door with much pushing or sho>ing to represent
the tunneling e!!ect"
Thin o! a room with a&out 3/ people acting as the electron charge" ( !ull room o! people
represents a -.-; when empty a 1ero" When an EPROM is erased# all 3/ people are pushed into
the room and pro>ide the charge that we call -.-" When we program an EPROM &it# we sho>e
these people until they pop &ac out &y applying a pulse o! high >oltage to the memory cell. This
pulse dri>es the people out o! the room changing the &it !rom a -.- to a -/-"
When programming a &it we can only change a . to a / &ecause changing a / to a . requires
erasing" To erase an EPROM# we apply an CD $Cltra,Diolet+ light $that shines directly on the chip+
to dri>e our imaginary people &ac into the room" Erasure wors on the whole EPROM not
indi>idual &its"
(n ('$%& cell is really an analog de>ice" %! it were digital# we would only ha>e an empty room
or a room with one person in it" %nstead# a cell sensor circuitry compares how many people are in
the room to a re!erence to determine i! the cell represents a . or /" With more than .5 people in
the room# the cell is considered a ."
When programming an EPROM you ha>e to apply the speci!ied programming >oltage !or the
speci!ied time" Too short a time or too low a >oltage and not all the people get sho>ed out o! the
room" When you don-t program an EPROM properly and you still ha>e 5 people in the room# it
will slow down the cell sensor circuitry# which slows down the read access time o! the EPROM or
might e>en corrupt the data" ( similar thing can happen i! you don-t erase the EPROM long
enough"
On the other hand# i! you apply too high o! a program >oltage or o>er erase the EPROM# it is
equi>alent to &lowing the door!rame right out o! the wallE Our imaginary people now enter and
e'it the room# milling around on their own whims and we no longer ha>e in!ormation storageE The
long and short o! it is you need to dou&le chec Dpp programming >oltages and !ollow the
recommended time !or erasing $don-t store unused chips in the eraserE+" More a&out this later
under the heading@ erasing an ('$%&"
$( little o!! the topic here# you may ha>e seen little solid state recording de>ices# sometimes used
in answering machines# that record >oice grade audio" The tric to getting so much audio into
storage is &y storing analog >alues into EEPROM cellsE The recorded cells ha>e intermediate
>alues that are not compared when read &ut out put as a >oltage" When the memory cells are
played &ac in consecuti>e order# the continuously changing >alues !orm an audio signalE+
( typical EPROM Pin Out
Pin-out of a 2716:
A7
. 24
Vcc
A6
2 23
A8
A5
3 22
A9
A4
4 2.
Vpp
A3
5 2/
Oe
A2
6 .9
A10
A1
7 .8
Ce
A0
8 .7
D7
D0
9 .6
D6
D1
./ .5
D5
D2
.. .4
D4
Gnd
.2
.3

D3

%n single >oltage EPROMs two o! the pins are power pins; one is F5D and the other ground"
)ingle >oltage EPROMs only require F5 to read them# &ut when programming they require a
second >oltage $Dpp+" The old three,supply EPROMs require F5# F.2 G ,5Ddc =ust to read them"
Het a !ourth >oltage is required to program themE Hou no longer see three supply EPROMs in
new products# &ut they are still out there in older equipment and are somewhat a>aila&le !or
replacements" ( good e'ample is the three supply 27.6 made &y Te'as %nstruments# T% ne>er
made a 27.6 single supply" There are also EPROMs that are pin compati&le &ut do not ha>e the
same num&er such as the 27.6 and the 25.6 $T"%"-s >ersion o! a single supply 27.6+" :ut !or
those o! you who program a lot o! 27.6-s remem&er that T"%"-s 27.6 are not the same as other
manu!actures"
:ac to pins# we loo at the OE $Output Ena&le+ and *E $*hip Ena&le+" The *E pin ena&les and
disa&les the data output" When disa&led most o! the chip is in a low power sleep mode" The
access time o! a chip is gi>en !rom the time *E &ecomes acti>e until data appears"
The access time using the OE pin is a lot shorter than *E &ecause the OE pin disa&les only the
data output pins# &ut not the rest o! the chip" This allows data to &e accessed at a much higher
speed at the cost o! increased power consumption"
When programming# we use the -++ line to supply the +rogramming ,oltage to the EPROM"
Other times# Dpp is ept at F5"
Most EPROMs ha>e 8 data lines $&its ;/ , ;7+ !orming a &yte wide data bus# some ha>e .6 data
lines $&its ;/ , ;.5+ which maes it a word wide data &us" Ena&ling &oth *E and OE causes all
the &its to appear on the data lines; you can not ena&le indi>idual &its" The data o! the &yte or
word# appears on these lines as /-s $a&out "4 Dolts+ or .-s $a&out 4 Dolts+" The data lines o! an
EPROM are &i,directional; they are outputs when you are reading the EPROM and inputs when
you are programming it"
The address lines !orm an address bus made o! inputs that together select which location you
want to read or program" (ddress lines start at (/ the I) $least signi!icant+ going up $(.# (2#
(3J+ with the address space dou&ling in si1e with each additional pin"
Be't# we ha>e to consider the ROM compati&le EPROM-s" These ha>e two pins# OE and (.6#
that are switched around" .Mega,&it Mas ROMs are in 28 pin pacages and .Mega,&it
EPROMs are in 32 pin pacages" :y switching the two pins around# we can use a EPROM !or
testing and de>eloping purposes" Once the code is completely de&ugged and you are ready to
switch to mased ROMs# there is no reason to change the &oard layout" )imply put the EPROM
in two pins lower in the socet $plug pin . into pin3# pin 2 into pin4 " etc"+" *ompanies that mae
>ideo games and Iaser printers use ROM compati&le EPROM-s in great quantities" Part
num&ers to loo !or are 27.//# 27./// G 273/." Remem&er# they are not pin compati&le with
27.//. or 27/./"
Programming an EPROM
(ll EPROM &its are set to a . when erased $each &yte K <<h+" When programming an EPROM
you can only change the .-s to /-s or clear &its" %! you program a &yte to ././/./. $(5h+# only
the /-s locations change state" Once a &it is changed to /# you can-t change it &ac to a . without
erasing the whole EPROM" We can go &ac and change any o! the .-s to /-s in a second
programming session called patching" <or e'ample# the (5h &yte $././/./.+ can &e changed to
2.h $//.////.+ &ut it can not &e changed to <5h $...././.+" Once more# remem&er
programming clears &its# &ut only erasing the EPROM sets them"
Programming an EPROM requires a special program >oltage called Dpp $25# 2. or .2"5 Dolts+"
Parts that use a Dpp o! .2"5 also require us to raise the Dcc !rom 5> to 6> during programming
Once the programming >oltage is applied# we apply the address location and data to &e
programmed into the EPROM" The data comes !rom an EPROM image in a memory &u!!er This
%mage is loaded !rom another EPROM or dis !ile" Then using one o! the programming
algorithms# we apply a programming pulse" The &est deal in programmers is the pocet
programmer"
Programming algorithms
Standard
This simplest o! the algorithms# uses a set time o! a 5/m) programming pulse on
each &yte" (!ter all &ytes are programmed each &yte is then >eri!ied or compared
to the EPROM image in the &u!!er" %! any &yte does not >eri!y then the EPROM is
considered &ad"
Fat !r
"nte##"$ent
This starts with a .m) programming pulse to program a &yte" Then the &yte is
checed against the programming data !or >eri!ication" %! it does not >eri!y# the
program pulse is dou&led $eeping trac o! the accumulated pulse time+ and the
&yte is programmed again" This process is ept up until the &yte is programmed"
The &yte is then programmed again with a pulse time equal to the accumulated
pulse multiplied &y 3 to &e sure it stics"
%! the data ne>er >eri!ies and the pulse is has grown to 25m)# the EPROM is &ad"
Snap%
E'treme caution must &e used with this protocol" %t will only wor on the newer
EPROMs" The Dpp G Dcc >oltages are raised close to the ma'imum le>els with a
Dpp o! .3> G Dcc o! 6"5D" Csing a .//u) programming pulse# the whole EPROM
is programmed $similar to the )tandard algorithm+" Be't a >eri!ication o! the whole
EPROM is done# i! a &yte does not >eri!y it is programmed again using a .//Cs
pulse until the &yte is success!ully programmed" (!ter ./ passes without
>eri!ication the EPROM is considered &ad" On the down side it also requires a
>ery high accuracy Dpp supply and is not !ound on many programmers" $)ome
low end EPROM programmers ha>e attempted this algorithm with disastrous
results+
32 &"t
The 32 &it algorithm requires newer EPROMs o! .Meg &it or larger $they ha>e
di!!erent internal worings+" This starts &y sending 4 &ytes o! data to the EPROM
that are latched internally" Then a programming pulse is applied which programs
all 4 &ytes at once" (!ter all location are programmed a >eri!ication pass is done
and any &ytes that do not >eri!y are programmed again using the 8 &it <ast
algorithm" The 32 &it algorithm programs large EPROM) 4 times !aster# &ut the
programming current is also 4 times as much and thus requires a special Dpp
supply"
Erasing an EPROM
(n EPROM can only &e erased using a CD light" Read and follow the safety instructions that
come with EPROM erasers and light uls"
% ha>e &een ased@
'() d! * need a +PROM eraer, can-t * #ea.e t(e/ !0t "n t(e
0n1
(h# yes you can# &ut it can tae a&out 3 wees o! sunny weatherE"
'e## t(en, (!2 a&!0t a 3#0!recent #"$(t1
Bo pro&lem# i! you don-t mind waiting a year or so"
'e## * (a.e a &#ac4 #"$(t1
The answer is still no"
(n EPROM requires a speci!ic !requency o! CD 253"7 nanometers $2537 angstroms+" %n !act the
high !requency CD light used will not pass through plastic or most glass" To pass this light# the
window in the EPROM is made o! quart1 crystal" The correct !requency o! a light source alone
won-t guarantee proper EPROM erasure" The intensity o! the light source com&ined with the
distance !rom the light source determines the intensity o! the e'posure" Iight intensity >aries
in>ersely with the distances !rom the source" $The longer the distance the lower the intensity o!
the light"+ Hou will !ind that the closer the chip is to the light source# the !aster the EPROM will
erase" *hip manu!acture tell us# Lthe EPROM should &e .L !rom the light source with an intensity
o! .2mWM*m2L" The manu!actures state a .L distance to ensure that the light intensity is e>en
o>er the entire EPROM# de!used# with no shadows o>er any part o! the EPROM silicon" $Het# %
ha>e success!ully used a .M2L distance to speed my prototype wor"+
:esides &ul& to chip distance# &ul& age also e!!ects e'posure time" :e aware o! the age o! the
EPROM technology you are erasing" Older ."3 micron technology taes longer to erase than "7
micron technology" With all these >aria&les# the &est way to determine e'posure time is to run an
empirical e'posure test" <irst# e'pose the EPROMs !or . minute and test !or erasure" %! they are
not erased# e'pose them again !or another minute" Keeping trac o! the total e'posure time#
repeat this process until they are erased" Bow tae the total time and multiply &y ."5" <or
e'ample# i! it taes 3 minutes we should use a 4"5 minutes e'posure time to ensure good
erasure without o>er erasing" Remem&er i! you lea>e an EPROM in the eraser too long# it can
remain erased !ore>er and will no longer program"
E>ery time an EPROM is programmed and erased it wears out a little" Erasing cycles will slow
down access times# &ut this is usually o! no consequence unless you erase them an e'treme
num&er o! cycles or !or an e'cessi>e e'posure time" (n EPROM with slow access time# may still
program and wor !ine on an EPROM programmer# &ut &eware that the EPROM programmer
does not require or test !or a !ast access time" ( worn out EPROM may program correctly yet !ail
to wor in the equipment that requires a !ast access time"
Maing Hour Own Eraser? Or why not to
.ermicidal light &ul&s are used in hospitals !or sterili1ing equipment &y illing germs" Nerms are
li>ing cells" We are also made o! li>ing cells" Read and follow the safety instructions that
come with EPROM erasers and light uls" Hou are not liely to go &lind !rom accidentally
looing at the light !or !ew seconds# &ut germicidal lamps should only &e operated in a safety-
interloc!ed enclosure"
%! you want to mae your own eraser# you would need to get a germicidal light &ul& that loos lie
a !luorescent lamp without the white coating on the inside" These are quart1 tu&es $remem&er
the CD will not pass through glass+" (t a light supply house you can get a N.5T $a .5 Watt lamp+
The L N L stands !or germicidal the same as L < L stands !or !luorescent $e>en though it has no
phosphors GA???+ " These light &ul&s can cost a&out ?3/"//# and you will also need a .5 Watt
!i'ture" Why not get a small ready,made eraser !or the same price? They are ine'pensi>e# easier
to use and ha>e &uilt in sa!ety interlocs"
The ;i!!erence :etween * G Bon,* EPROMs
The only di!!erence &etween a 27256 and a 27*256 is that the 27256 uses BMO) while the
27*256 uses *MO) technology" *MO) only consumes apprecia&le power when a signal is
switching" BMO) uses B,*hannel <ET-s with resister elements while *MO) a>oids the power
wasting resistors &y using &oth B and P,channel <ET-s" Thus *MO) a>oids the production o!
heat allowing tighter placements o! transistors than BMO) is capa&le o!" The high density
placement o! *MO) reduces the interconnect path lengths and thus increases the speed" *MO)
also shines when there is limited power such as in a &attery system"
)ome people ha>e pro&lems when programming *MO) EPROMs on older programmers
&ecause o! the di!!erences in programming >oltages $*MO) has a .2"5D Dpp+" *MO) EPROMs
also require a supply >oltage $Dcc+ o! exactly 6 Dolts" *MO) parts are eraser to erase &ut prone
to die i! o>er e'posed to CD light"
;ecoding EPROM Bum&ers
27$*+OOO are EPROMs or OTPROM)s"
57$*+OOO are EPROMs or OTPROM)s that allow the lower 8 address lines to &e multiple'ed
with the ;ata lines" $)ome M*C-s multiple' the lower address and data lines together+" These
parts still program lie 27$*+OOO EPROMs on the Pocet Programmer &ecause the so!tware
algorithm taes this into account"
28$*+OOO are EEPROMs with the * standing !or *MO)"
28<OOO are <lash EEPROMs with the < standing !or <lash" ;o not con!use these with
EEPROMs as they are not"