Programming of antifuse cells

1. A method of programming an antifuse memory, comprising, for a cell to be programmed, the steps of:

counting a number of control pulses of a charge pump circuit;

generating from the counted number of control pulses a signal having a value that changes over time to indicate consumed current of the antifuse memory in a memory programming mode;

comparing the changing value of the signal with a threshold; and

stopping the programming of the cell when said comparing indicates that the threshold has been reached.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising applying a programming voltage, greater than a power supply voltage of the antifuse memory in read mode, during the programming.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising adjusting said threshold according to a power consumption of the antifuse memory in the absence of programming.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the charge pump circuit is configured to deliver a programming voltage to the antifuse memory during programming of the cell.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising successively selecting cells of the antifuse memory to be programmed.

6. An antifuse memory cell programming circuit, comprising:

a charge pump circuit configured to deliver, from a first power supply voltage, a second higher programming voltage;

a circuit configured to successively select cells to be programmed;

a circuit configured to count control pulses of the charge pump circuit during programming of a cell and generate a signal having a value that increases over time in response to consumed current by said cell during programming; and

a control circuit configured to stop programming of the cell when the increasing value of said signal exceeds a threshold.

7. The circuit of claim 6 , wherein said circuit configured to count comprises a synchronous counter of said control pulses.

8. A method of programming an antifuse memory cell, comprising:

applying a boosted voltage generated by a charge pump circuit to said antifuse memory cell during programming mode;

comparing the boosted voltage to a first threshold;

generating control pulses for said charge pump circuit in response to the comparison;

counting a number of said control pulses generated during a testing period of time during programming mode; and

stopping programming mode when the counted number of control pulses exceeds a second threshold.

9. An antifuse memory cell programming circuit, comprising:

a charge pump circuit configured to deliver a boosted voltage to an antifuse memory cell during programming mode;

a comparator configured to compare the boosted voltage to a first threshold;

a control pulse generator circuit configured to generate control pulses for controlling operation of said charge pump circuit;

a counter circuit configured to count a number of said control pulses generated during a testing period of time during programming mode and terminate programming mode when the counted number of control pulses exceeds a second threshold.

10. A method of programming an antifuse memory, comprising, for a cell to be programmed, the steps of:

determining whether a boosted voltage in excess of a power supply voltage applied to the antifuse memory during programming exceeds a voltage threshold;

assessing a power consumption of the antifuse memory in a memory programming mode by counting a number of control pulses of a charge pump circuit to determine a value indicating consumed current;

comparing the value indicating consumed current with a threshold; and

stopping the programming of the cell when said comparing indicates that the threshold has been reached.

11. A method of programming an antifuse memory, comprising, for a cell to be programmed, the steps of:

assessing a power consumption of the antifuse memory in a memory programming mode by counting a number of control pulses of a charge pump circuit to determine a value indicating consumed current;

comparing the value indicating consumed current with a threshold;

stopping the programming of the cell when said comparing indicates that the threshold has been reached; and

adjusting said threshold according to a power consumption of the antifuse memory in the absence of programming.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising applying a programming voltage, greater than a power supply voltage of the antifuse memory in read mode, during the programming.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the charge pump circuit is configured to deliver a programming voltage to the antifuse memory during programming of the cell.

14. The method of claim 11 , further comprising successively selecting cells of the antifuse memory to be programmed.