文档介绍：How Flash Memory Works
by Jeff Tyson
Electronic es in a variety of forms to serve a variety of purposes. Flash memory is
used for easy and fast information storage in such devices as digital cameras and home video
game consoles. It is used more as a hard drive than as RAM. In fact, Flash memory is considered
a solid state storage device. Solid state means that there are no moving parts -- everything is
electronic instead of mechanical.
Here are a few examples of Flash memory:
• puter's BIOS chip
• CompactFlash (most often found in digital cameras)
• SmartMedia (most often found in digital cameras)
• Memory Stick (most often found in digital cameras)
• PCMCIA Type I and Type II memory cards (used as solid-state disks in laptops)
• Memory cards for video game consoles
In this article, we'll find out how Flash memory works and look at some of the forms it takes and
types of devices that use it.
More Memory!
• puter Memory Works
• How RAM Works
• How Virtual Memory Works
• How ROM Works
• How Removable Storage Works
• How BIOS Works
The Basics
We discussed the underlying technology of Flash memory in How ROM Works, but here's a quick
review:
Flash memory is a type of EEPROM chip. It has a grid of columns and rows with a cell that has
two transistors at each intersection (see image below). The two transistors are s