Resistance State Locking in CBRAM Cells Due to Displacement Damage Effects

Two different displacement damage experiments were performed on CBRAM cells. In one experiment, conductive bridging random access memory (CBRAM) cells were exposed to 14 MeV neutrons to a total fluence of 3.19 × 10
¹³
n/cm
²
. In the second test, CBRAM cells were bombarded with 200 keV Si
²⁺
ions. In both the experiments, the high resistance and low resistance states (LRSs) of the cells were observed to converge with increasing particle fluence. After reaching a 14 MeV neutron fluence of 2.93 × 10
¹³
n/cm
²
, the CBRAM cells became irrecoverably locked into their final resistance state. In situ testing during heavy ion exposure showed a steady decrease in the resistance state of each cell with each successive exposure to the beam. The devices eventually became locked in an LRS.