Total Ionizing Dose (TID) Effects of $\gamma $ Ray Radiation on Ag/AlO$_{\mathrm{x}}$/Pt Resistive Switching Memory

The TID effects of $\gamma $ rays generated from a $^{\mathrm{60}}$Co source on the Ag/AlO$_{\mathrm{x}}$/Pt resistive switching (RS) memory is studied. Memory performances, including initial resistance state (IRS), low/high resistance state (LRS/HRS), forming voltage (V$_{\mathrm{f}})$, switching voltage (V$_{\mathrm{set}}$/V$_{\mathrm{reset}})$ and retention reliability are examined on the memory devices before and after exposure to 1M rad (Si) radiation. The LRS is robust to the radiation whereas a little degeneration of uniformity is found in IRS and HRS, which is caused by the radiation induced defects (mainly holes), trapped in the oxide. For the same reason, V$_{\mathrm{f}}$ increases several multiples after radiation. However surprisingly, both V$_{\mathrm{set}}$ and V$_{\mathrm{reset}}$ decrease during the RS and the retention performance is greatly improved. Based on these TID effects, it is proposed that the RS mechanism in Ag/AlO$_{\mathrm{x}}$/Pt, Ag conducting filament based switching, may be reinforced through $\gamma $ radiation, which assists in stabilizing the growth/rupture of Ag filaments. The high radiation tolerance of AlO$_{\mathrm{x}}$-based RS memory devices suggests a potential for aerospace and nuclear applications.