SRAM vs DRAM: 12 Must-Know Facts

  • SRAM was invented in 1963 by Robert Norman as a semiconductor bipolar at Fairchild Semiconductor.DRAM was invented in 1967 by Robert Dennard as one of the important computer technology advances.SRAM is mainly fixed on the processor or within the memory and the processor.DRAM is fixed on the motherboard.The successor of the SRAM is the DRAM because it is cheaper to produce.SRAM is available for purchase, but mainly for system builders.The oldest version of the DRAM is DDR1, but it is only available to industrial manufacturers and not consumers. On the other hand, the latest version is the DDR4, which is available for both consumers and industrial manufacturers.SRAM saves data on the memory when power is still connected to the system.DRAM needs to be periodically refreshed.SRAM is an abbreviation for Static Random-Access Memory.DRAM is an abbreviation for dynamic random access memory.

SRAM and DRAM are both types of random access memory. Both RAMs were invented to offer data storage to different applications. SRAM (Static Random Access Memory) is a type of RAM that stores data bits in the memory when it is connected to power. On the other hand, DRAM (dynamic random access memory) stores data in bits in the cells of both transistors and capacitors.

SRAM vs DRAM: Side-by-Side Comparison

What is SRAM?

SRAM is also known as Static random-access memory is a certain type of RAM (random-access memory) that mainly uses flip-flop or latching circuitry to store each bit of data. SRAM is a type of memory that is volatile thus meaning when power is disconnected, it loses data. 

Complete History of SRAM

In 1963, Robert Norman invented the semiconductor bipolar SRAM at the Fairchild Semiconductor International, Inc. The MOS SRAM was invented by John Schmidt in 1964 at Fairchild Semiconductor. 

After its invention, SRAM became the main driver behind any technology of the CMOS fabrication process from the day when the invention of CMOS in 1959. In 1965, Eugene Schling and Arnold Farber who were working for IBM, decided to create a memory cell that was hard wired by using a tunnel diode latch and a transistor gate.

They had to replace the latch with two resistors and two transistors, a configuration that was called a Farber-Schling cell. Benjamin Agusta together with his IBM team 1995 decided to come up with a 16-bit silicon memory chip that was located in the Farber-Schling cell with 64 resistors, 4 diodes, and 80 transistors. 

Applications of SRAM

  • Digital cameras. Automobile equipment.Modern electronic equipment.Synthesizers.Hard disk buffers.Computing applications.PrinterComputing applications.

SRAM can be used in many more digital applications than DRAM. The main reason for using SRAM is to come up with a memory cache.

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Features of SRAM

SRAM is mostly used as a memory cache. 

  • SRAM is faster compared to DRAM.Uses less power for consumption than DRAM.It takes more space.Mostly used for level 1 and level 2 cache.The cycle time for SRAM is shorter than DRAM because it doesn’t need to pause.

What is DRAM?

DRAM (dynamic random access memory) is a certain type of semiconductor memory that is used to store each bit of data directly in the memory cell. This memory cell has a transistor and a tiny capacitor that are both based on the MOS (metal-oxide-semiconductor) technology.

Most designs of the DRAM memory cell use transistors and capacitors, but others only need two transistors. The one that uses a capacitor, the capacitor can be discharged or charged. The two states represent the bit values, conventionally known as 0 and 1.

The capacitors that are electrically charged gradually leak away without any data intervention on the capacitor being lost. In order to prevent this, DRAM needs a memory refresh circuit that periodically rewrites the capacitor data, restoring them to their original charge.

History of DRAM

The Aquarius, a cryptanalytic machine code, was used during World War II at Bletchley Park to make the hard-wired dynamic. Paper tape was studied and most of the characters on it were commonly remembered in the dynamic store.

This store mostly used capacitors with large banks. These capacitors were charged or discharged. The charged one represented a cross (1) while the uncharged capacitor represented a dot (0). Since the charge is leaked away, application of periodic pulse in order to top up the charged ones.

The earliest DRAM forms used bipolar transistors. As a result, it outperformed magnetic-core memory in terms of performance, but it couldn’t compete with the lower price of the dominant magnetic-core memory. In the earlier memory schemes, capacitors were commonly used.

In 1969, Advanced Memory System, Inc. of Sunnyvale, CA commercialized MOS DRAM chips. The chip was later sold to different organizations. During this year, Honeywell requested Intel to make a 3 transistor cell DRAM which they had already developed. In 1970, it became the Intel 1102. This Intel had many issues, forcing Intel to start working on a newly improved design and also avoid a conflict with Honeywell.

They released the Intel 1103 in October 1970, but there were issues with low yield until they decided to release the revisions for the fifth time. The first DRAM had columns as well as rows that were multiplexed. This DRAM was created by Robert Dennard and was invented in 1973. In 2001, the DRAM makers in Japan accused the DRAM manufacturers in Korea of dumping.

Applications of DRAM

  • Can be used in networking.When one needs a RAM that is cost-effective, DRAM is the best option to consider.DRAM is mostly used in personal computers.It can be used in operated batteries that are asynchronous and synchronous applications.In graphic functions enhancement on computers, DRAM memories are the best to use.

Features of DRAM

  • DRAM tends to be much slower.The lifetime of DRAM data is short.It needs to be periodically refreshed.

SRAM vs DRAM: Which One is Better?

Both SRAM and DRAM have some major differences as well as similarities. One of the main differences is that SRAM tends to be faster than DRAM because DRAM requires regular data refreshing that is already stored in the memory. SRAM is expensive because it needs 6 transistors for a simple memory block, while DRAM is cheaper because it needs a single transistor for a simple memory block.

The main differences between SRAM and DRAM are features such as speed, performance, functionality, and other features. Among the two RAMs, SRAM is the best for activities like gaming due to its fast speed.

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