Proton-based total-dose irradiation effects on Cu/HfO2:Cu/Pt ReRAM devices

The resistive switching properties of Cu-doped-HfO2-based resistive-random-access-memory (ReRAM) devices are investigated under proton-based irradiations with different high-range total doses of 1.5, 3 and 5 Giga-rad[Si]. The measurement results obtained immediately after irradiation demonstrate that the proton-based total dose will introduce significant variations in the operation voltages and resistance values. These effects are enhanced almost linearly when the dose increases from 1.5 to 5 Giga-rad[Si]. Furthermore, five days after irradiation, the electrical properties of the device rebound, resulting in reduced operation voltages and resistance values. This is consistent with the time-dependent super-recovery behavior observed previously in CMOS gate oxide. These results can be explained by the proton irradiation effect on the electron/hole trap density inside HfO2 and its impact on ReRAM device metallic filament formation-and-rupture, which is based on electrolyte theory.