MT/s for RAM stands for Megatransfers (or million transfers) per second, representing the effective data rate or speed.
Understanding MT/s for RAM Speed
When you see specifications for RAM, especially modern types like DDR (Double Data Rate) SDRAM, the speed is often listed in MT/s. This measurement provides a more accurate picture of how quickly data is being transferred compared to just looking at the clock speed in MHz.
According to the reference, MT/s is short for megatransfers (or million transfers) per second and is a more accurate measurement for the effective data rate (speed) of DDR SDRAM memory in computing.
Here's why MT/s is used and what it signifies:
- Megatransfers Per Second: It quantifies the number of data transfer operations that occur each second. One megatransfer equals one million transfers.
- Effective Data Rate: For technologies like DDR RAM, data is transferred on both the rising and falling edges of the clock signal. This means that in one clock cycle, two data transfers can occur. MT/s accounts for these multiple transfers per clock cycle, giving you the effective speed at which data moves.
- Distinction from MHz (Clock Speed): The clock speed (MHz) refers to the number of clock cycles per second. While related, MT/s reflects the transfers per second, which for DDR is typically twice the clock speed due to transferring data on both clock edges.
For example, the reference includes: "Example: SDRAM. Clock: 100MHz. Transfer Rate: 100MT/s." This example, likely referring to older Single Data Rate (SDR) SDRAM, shows a 1:1 ratio between clock speed (MHz) and transfer rate (MT/s) because data was transferred only once per clock cycle. For modern DDR RAM, a module with a clock speed of 1600 MHz would have an effective transfer rate of 3200 MT/s.
Using MT/s helps clearly communicate the performance difference between various RAM modules, especially when comparing different generations or speeds of DDR technology.
