Design Exploration of Sensing Techniques in 2T-2R Resistive Ternary CAMs

Rakka, M.; Fouda, M. E.; Kanj, R.; Eltawil, Ahmed; Kurdahi, F. J.

Design Exploration of Sensing Techniques in 2T-2R Resistive Ternary CAMs

Type

Article

Authors

Rakka, M.
Fouda, M. E.
Kanj, R.
Eltawil, Ahmed

Kurdahi, F. J.

KAUST Department

Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering (CEMSE) Division

Date

2020

Abstract

In-Memory Computing (IMC) is considered a great candidate to replace von-Neumann computing architecture to overcome the memory wall. Ternary content-addressable memories are the main building blocks in IMC-based architectures, such as the associative processors. In this paper, we present a juxtaposition between the capacitive and resistive sensing in 2T-2R TCAMs. A Figure of Merit, function of the dynamic range, latency, and energy, is defined to have a fair comparison between the two sensing techniques. A mathematical model for the transient behavior of both sensing schemes has been derived and verified through SPICE simulations. We studied the performance with an in-memory addition application. Results from various scenarios show that the resistive sensing outperforms the capacitive one in both theoretical and application-based contexts.

Citation

Rakka, M., Fouda, M. E., Kanj, R., Eltawil, A., & Kurdahi, F. J. (2020). Design Exploration of Sensing Techniques in 2T-2R Resistive Ternary CAMs. IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II: Express Briefs, 1–1. doi:10.1109/tcsii.2020.3017477