Radiation Damage in Electronic Memory Devices

This paper investigates the behavior of semiconductor memories exposed to radiation in order to establish their applicability in a radiation environment. The experimental procedure has been used to test radiation hardness of commercial semiconductor memories. Different types of memory chips have bee...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Irfan Fetahović, Milić Pejović, Miloš Vujisić
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hindawi Limited 2013-01-01
Series:International Journal of Photoenergy
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/170269
Description
Summary:This paper investigates the behavior of semiconductor memories exposed to radiation in order to establish their applicability in a radiation environment. The experimental procedure has been used to test radiation hardness of commercial semiconductor memories. Different types of memory chips have been exposed to indirect ionizing radiation by changing radiation dose intensity. The effect of direct ionizing radiation on semiconductor memory behavior has been analyzed by using Monte Carlo simulation method. Obtained results show that gamma radiation causes decrease in threshold voltage, being proportional to the absorbed dose of radiation. Monte Carlo simulations of radiation interaction with material proved to be significant and can be a good estimation tool in probing semiconductor memory behavior in radiation environment.
ISSN:1110-662X
1687-529X