T-RAM Semiconductor

About T-RAM Semiconductor

T-RAM Semiconductor, founded in 2000 by Homan Igehy, operated as a fabless semiconductor company focused on developing a novel memory technology. The company's primary innovation was Thyristor-RAM (T-RAM), a type of random-access memory designed to combine the high-density advantages of DRAM with the high-speed performance of SRAM. This was achieved through their proprietary Thin Capacitively-Coupled Thyristor (TCCT) technology, which utilized a single thyristor-based latch instead of the six transistors typically found in a standard SRAM cell, resulting in a significantly smaller memory cell size.

The company targeted the high-performance computing, networking, and telecom markets, which require high-density and high-performance synchronous SRAM (SSRAM). T-RAM's business model was centered on developing this memory technology and then likely licensing it or producing discrete and embedded memory products. They operated in the highly competitive semiconductor memory market, with competitors including companies like RAAAM, Virtium, and GSI Technology. Over its lifetime, the company successfully raised a total of $86 million in funding through multiple rounds from investors such as InterWest Partners, CenterPoint Ventures, Mayfield, US Venture Partners, Tallwood Venture Capital, and New Enterprise Associates. In 2005, the company announced it was preparing its first embedded memory products with densities ranging from 9-Mbit up to 72-Mbit.

The core of T-RAM's product offering was its T-RAM technology, which promised a memory cell one-fourth to one-eighth the size of conventional 6T-SRAM. This technology exploited the electrical property of negative differential resistance to create highly scalable memory cells. The key benefit was a superior density-to-performance ratio, matching the speed of SRAM while offering 2-3 times greater storage density and lower power consumption. While the company showed initial success with working silicon, it is no longer active.