Computing devices like ours have both SRAM and DRAM at hand. Their primary function is to supply data to and from the processor.
Although they perform similar functions, they differ in price and speed. This is because of the way they operate and the technology used to manufacture them.
Static or SRAM modules come ascachesandregistersplaced between the processor and the Main memory. It is a superfast, low-density, more expensive type of memory. Data on an SRAM does not need to be rewritten as long as power is supplied to it.
Meanwhile, Dynamic or DRAM is the type of memory module we typically consider “RAM.” Present on the motherboard, it is a cheaper, high-density, and comparatively slower memory.
Dynamic RAM or DRAM is a type of memory manufactured using capacitors and transistors. This memory can hold datamore densely than an SRAM and is also cheaper to manufacture.
DRAM loses all its data when the system cuts off the power supply because it is a volatile memory. As its name implies, the Dynamic in DRAM means that data is written repeatedly to keep it, even when the power supply is constant.
Unlike SRAM, the determinant for speed and capacity of Dynamic memory modules aren’t based on their hierarchy level. Instead, their generation determines them. Thelatest being the 5th generationof DDR topology (DDR5 or Double Data Rate Fifth).
Manufacturers useflip-flops and transistors to make Static RAM. This type of memory module can transfer data faster compared to DRAM. They are also much smaller than their Dynamic counterpart, being only acouple of Megabytes in size.
Static RAM is also a type of volatile memory, but due to the technology used to manufacture it, existing data in SRAM isstored without being rewritten. Instead, when new data comes in, the old data is overwritten, and the CPU then uses the new information for processing.
Static memory modules work on a hierarchical basis, meaning the fastest cache memory is theLevel 1 or L1 cacheand, after that, theLevel 2 or L2 cache, and so on.
Differences between Dynamic RAM and Static RAM
Both memory modules hold data for the CPU to fetch and process. Yet, how they do this task and the technology used to manufacture them differ.
SRAM stores the bits on a type of flip-flop known as alatch. Here, the data is stored in the form ofvoltages. DRAM, however, functions by keeping the data ascharges on a capacitor within a transistor.
These memory modules also come in various shapes and forms. DRAM, being a modular component,has more formswhen compared with an SRAM. The most common form factors for DRAM are
SRAM comes in the form ofcachesandregisters. These are memory modules that focus on speed above all. They arenot upgradable or swappableand are either integrated into the CPU or soldered to the motherboard.
