Resistive Memory Based Acceleration of Data Intensive Computing

Resistive memory technologies hold the promise of replacing mainstream on-chip memory while providing enhanced throughput and capacity in modern compute systems. Demonstrating material, process, and circuit compatibility with existing CMOS infrastructures, resistive memories deliver non-volatility, no static power consumption, and improved density. Application of these technologies, however, requires novel circuits and architectures that exploit these features. Several approaches are summarized in this article in which resistive memory technologies are leveraged to achieve significant performance enhancement in modern data intensive applications. Two recent results utilizing phase change memory (PCM) and spin torque transfer magnetoresistive RAM (STT-MRAM) based resistive TCAM systems demonstrate significant acceleration and energy reduction over a broad set of data intensive applications. Additionally, recent circuit level enhancements to increase the sensing ratio are described that demonstrate improved read latency for STT-MRAM arrays. Lastly, a magnetic field is applied to MTJ devices to improve both write energy and latency in high performance STT-MRAM on-chip caches.