ROM taxonomy: A ROM that lets users program data by permanently opening fusible links is called what type of ROM?

Introduction / Context:
Read-only memory technologies differ in how and when data is defined. The mechanism—fuse blowing, ultraviolet erasure, or electrical erase—determines the device class and how users interact with it. Accurately identifying these classes is essential in digital design and maintenance.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Statement labels a fusible-link user-programmable ROM as EPROM.
• We compare PROM, EPROM, and EEPROM mechanisms.
• We assume standard industry definitions.

Concept / Approach:
Fusible-link one-time programmable devices are called PROMs (OTP PROMs). EPROMs use floating-gate transistors that can be erased by ultraviolet light exposure through a quartz window and reprogrammed electrically. EEPROMs are electrically erasable and programmable in-circuit. Therefore, calling a fusible-link programmable ROM an “EPROM” is incorrect; it is a PROM.

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:
Vendor datasheets and textbooks clearly classify fusible-link devices as PROMs and describe EPROM erase procedures using UV lamps, not fuses.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• Correct: Would endorse the wrong ROM type.
• Ambiguous / EEPROM-only: The statement is specific and unambiguous, and EEPROM uses a different mechanism.

Common Pitfalls:
Using “EPROM” generically for any user-programmable ROM; overlooking that EPROMs are erasable and not one-time like fusible PROMs.

Final Answer:
Incorrect