Semiconductor memory device and erase method including changing erase pulse magnitude for a memory array

1. A method, comprising:

performing a first erase verify on a first set of memory cells of a portion of an array of memory cells;

performing a second erase verify on a second set of memory cells of the portion of the array;

applying a first erase voltage pulse concurrently to each memory cell in the portion of the array if the first set fails the first erase verify and if the second set fails the second erase verify;

applying a second erase voltage pulse concurrently to each memory cell in the portion of the array if the first set passes the first erase verify and if the second set fails the second erase verify;

wherein the second erase voltage pulse is different than the first erase voltage pulse; and

applying a third erase voltage pulse when a number of erase operations and program operations reaches a first threshold number of the erase operations and the program operations, wherein a magnitude of the third erase voltage pulse changes when the number of the erase operations and the program operations reaches a second threshold number of the erase operations and the program operations.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second erase voltage pulse being different than the first erase voltage pulse comprises the second erase voltage pulse having at least one of:

a voltage lower in magnitude than a voltage of the first erase voltage pulse; and

having a shorter time duration than the first erase voltage pulse.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

the portion of the array comprises a number of strings of series-coupled memory cells;

the first set comprises a first group of the memory cells in each of the number strings; and

the second set comprises a second group of the memory cells in each of the number strings.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the array comprises a three dimensional NAND array.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the portion of array is a block of memory cells.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

performing the first erase verify on the first set of memory cells while applying a pass voltage to the second set of memory cells; and

performing the second erase verify on the second set of memory cells while applying the pass voltage to the first set of memory cells.

7. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:

performing the first erase verify on the first set of memory cells by applying a first erase verify voltage to the first set of memory cells;

performing the second erase verify on the second set of memory cells by applying a second erase verify voltage to the second set of memory cells; and

applying a same failure criterion to the first set of memory cells and the second set of memory cells.

8. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:

performing the first erase verify on the first set of memory cells by applying an erase verify voltage to the first set of memory cells;

performing the second erase verify on the second set of memory cells by applying the erase verify voltage to the second set of memory cells; and

applying a first failure criterion to the first set of memory cells and a second failure criterion to second set of memory cells, wherein the second failure criterion is different than the first failure criterion.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the first failure criterion comprises a first threshold number of memory cells in the first set that is allowed to fail the first erase verify without the first set failing the first erase verify, and the second failure criterion is a second threshold number of memory cells in the second set that is allowed to fail the second erase verify without the second set failing the second erase verify.

10. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory array comprising a number of groups of memory cells; and

a controller coupled to the memory array, the controller configured to:

perform a first erase verify on a first set of memory cells, while applying a pass voltage to a second set of memory cells, to determine a first erase verify result for the first set, the first set comprising a respective first portion of each respective one of a number of groups of memory cells, the second set of memory cells comprising a respective second portion of each respective one of the number of groups;

use the first erase verify result as a first erase verify result for each respective one of the number of groups;

perform a second erase verify on the second set of memory cells, while applying the pass voltage to the first set, to obtain a second erase verify result for the second set;

use the second erase verify result as a second erase verify result for each respective one of the number of groups; and

perform a third erase verify on the first set of memory cells, wherein a third erase voltage pulse is applied when a number of erase operations and program operations reaches a first threshold number of the erase operations and the program operations, and a magnitude of the third erase voltage pulse changes when the number of the erase operations and the program operations reaches a second threshold number of the erase operations and the program operations.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the controller is configured to:

apply an erase verify voltage to the first set during the first erase verify and apply a first criterion to determine the first erase verify result responsive to applying the erase verify voltage; and

apply the erase verify voltage to the second set during the second erase verify and apply a second criterion to determine the second erase verify result responsive to applying the erase verify voltage.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein:

the controller being configured to apply the first criterion to determine the first erase verify result comprises the controller being configured to compare a number of the groups that failed the first erase verify to a first threshold number of the groups that is allowed to fail without failing the first erase verify; and

the controller being configured to apply the second criterion to determine the second erase verify result comprises the controller being configured to compare a number of the groups that failed the second erase verify to a second threshold number of the groups that is allowed to fail without failing the second erase verify, the second threshold number different than the first threshold number.

13. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the controller is configured to:

apply a first erase verify voltage to the first set during the first erase verify and apply a criterion to determine the first erase verify result responsive to applying the first erase verify voltage; and

apply a second erase verify voltage to the second set during the second erase verify and apply the criterion to determine the second erase verify result responsive to applying the second erase verify voltage.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein:

the controller being configured to apply the criterion to determine the first erase verify result comprises the controller being configured to compare a number of the groups that failed the first erase verify to a count fail byte value; and

the controller being configured to apply the criterion to determine the second erase verify result comprises the controller being configured to compare a number of the groups that failed the second erase verify to the count fail byte value.

15. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the controller is configured to:

apply a first erase voltage pulse concurrently to each memory cell in each of the number of groups if the first result is an erase verify failure and if the second result is an erase verify failure; and

apply a second erase voltage pulse concurrently to each memory cell in each of the number of groups if the first result is an erase verify pass and if the second result is an erase verify failure;

wherein the second erase voltage pulse has a voltage lower in magnitude than a voltage of the first erase voltage pulse or has a shorter time duration than the first erase voltage pulse or has the voltage lower in magnitude than the voltage of the first erase voltage pulse and has the shorter time duration than the first erase voltage pulse.

16. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the controller is configured to:

apply an erase voltage pulse concurrently to each memory cell in each of the number of groups if the first result is an erase verify pass and if the second result is an erase verify failure; and

responsive to applying the erase voltage pulse apply the third erase verify different than the first erase verify and the second erase verify to the first set and apply a fourth erase verify different than the third erase verify to the second set.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the controller is configured to:

apply a first erase verify voltage to the first set during the first erase verify;

apply a second erase verify voltage greater in magnitude than the first erase verify voltage to the second set during the second erase verify;

apply the third erase verify voltage greater in magnitude than the second erase verify voltage to the first set during the third erase verify; and

apply a fourth erase verify voltage greater in magnitude than the third erase verify voltage to the second set during the fourth erase verify.

18. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory array comprising a number of groups of memory cells; and

a controller coupled to the memory array, the controller configured to:

perform a first erase verify on a first set of memory cells by applying a first erase verify voltage to the first set, the first set comprising a respective first portion of each respective one of the number of groups;

perform a second erase verify on a second set of memory cells by applying a second erase verify voltage to the second set, the second erase verify voltage greater in magnitude than the first erase verify voltage, the second set comprising a respective second portion of each respective one of the number of groups;

apply a third erase voltage pulse when a number of erase operations and program operations reaches a first threshold number of the erase operations and the program operations, wherein a magnitude of the third erase voltage pulse changes when the number of the erase operations and the program operations reaches a second threshold number of the erase operations and the program operations; and

increase a magnitude of the first erase verify voltage to a third erase verify voltage and increase a magnitude of the second erase verify voltage to a fourth erase verify voltage responsive to the first set passing the first erase verify and the second set failing the second erase verify, the fourth erase verify voltage greater in magnitude than the third erase verify voltage.

19. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the controller is configured to:

apply an erase voltage pulse to the number of groups responsive to the first set passing the first erase verify and the second set failing the second erase verify; and

responsive to applying the erase voltage pulse apply the third erase verify voltage to the first set and the fourth erase verify voltage to the second set.

20. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the controller is configured to determine the second set as passing the first erase verify responsive to the first set passing the first program verify without the first program verify being performed on the second set and to determine the first set as failing the second erase verify responsive to the second set failing the second program verify without the second program verify being performed on the first set.

21. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the controller is configured to:

determine the first set as passing the first program verify responsive to a number of the groups failing the first program verify being less than or equal to a threshold number; and

determine the second set as failing the second program verify responsive to a number of the groups failing the second program verify being greater than the threshold number.

22. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the controller is configured to:

apply a pass voltage to the first set while applying the first erase verify voltage to the second set; and

apply the pass voltage to the first set while applying the second erase verify voltage to the second set.

23. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the memory cells of each respective first portion of each respective one of the number of groups and the memory cells of each respective second portion of each respective one of the number of groups alternate.

24. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein memory array is a three dimensional NAND memory array.