Abstract
The methodological approach of hammering multiple rows is newly proposed to evaluate today’s SDRAMs, employed with in-DRAM mitigation circuits. The multiple rows are selected based on the one-row hammering test (single row hammering without refresh commands) and are exploited to defeat the employed mitigation algorithm. We irradiated the target sample using an X-ray to observe the reactions of the mitigation circuit when various combinations of multiple rows are hammered. The results showed a four times reduction in the number of hammering thresholds under the one-row hammering test. The same radiated sample showed no errors when one or a few rows were hammered due to the built-in mitigation circuit. However, multiple rows hammering (MRH) demonstrated its effectiveness by generating errors despite an active mitigation circuit. In this paper, we explore the X-ray damage results in the aging of the DRAM sample and induces vulnerabilities from the row hammering error perspective. Also, we use the error bits detected by MRH to investigate the coverage pitfalls of the mitigation circuit employed in the sample DRAM. Finally, we newly evaluate the remaining retention time under row hammering stress to explain the coverage loss in the mitigation strategy based solely on hammering counts.
Highlights
A DRAM cell needs to be refreshed at least once every 64 ms at an average operating temperature to maintain its stored value
An example of the additional refresh can be found in the Target Row Refresh (TRR) mode provided by DRAM manufacturers [2]
The study in this work started with a curiosity about the reactions of the mitigation circuit when weakened DRAMs— which can happen in many different ways, such as technology shrinkage, normal degradation, and radiation— are row hammered
Summary
A DRAM cell needs to be refreshed at least once every 64 ms at an average operating temperature to maintain its stored value. The study in this work started with a curiosity about the reactions of the mitigation circuit when weakened DRAMs— which can happen in many different ways, such as technology shrinkage, normal degradation, and radiation— are row hammered. X-ray radiation damages the DRAM cells and induces the aging process, resulting in a shift in the threshold number [21]–[23]. We evaluated the X-ray damaged DRAM by analyzing various reactions of mitigation circuits to different combinations of multiple rows hammering (MRH). Recent works demonstrated the effects of multiple rows hammer to find weaknesses of built-in mitigation circuits.
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