This paper identifies the failure modes of a commercial 130-nm ferroelectric random access memory. The devices were irradiated with heavy-ion and pulsed focused X-ray beams. Various failure modes are observed, which generate characteristic error patterns, affecting isolated bits, words, groups of pages, and sometimes entire regions of the memory array. The underlying mechanisms are discussed.

The impact of heavy-ions on commercial Ferroelectric Memories (FRAMs) is analyzed. The influence of dynamic and static test modes as well as several stimuli on the error rate of this memory is investigated. Static test results show that the memory is prone to temporary effects occurring in the peripheral circuitry, with a possible effect due to fluence. Dynamic tests results show a high sensitivity of this memory to switching activity of this peripheral circuitry.

Calculating Single Event Effect (SEE) rates is essential to ensure space mission reliability. Standard methods rely on ground-data which is not fully representative of the space radiation environment. In this paper, we evaluate these methods using SEE data collected during 5.5 years from the Single Event Upset and Single Event Latch-up Monitors aboard the Alphasat spacecraft in Geostationary orbit.

Ionizing radiation induces the degradation of electronic systems. For memory devices, this phenomenon is often observed as the corruption of the stored data and, in some cases, the occurrence of sudden increases in current consumption during the operation. In this work, we propose enhanced experimental instrumentation to perform in-depth Single-Event Effects (SEE) monitoring and analysis of electronic systems. In particular, we focus on the Single-Event Latch-up (SEL) phenomena in memory devices, in which current monitoring and control are required for testing. To expose the features and function of the proposed instrumentation, we present results for a case study of an SRAM memory that has been used on-board PROBA-V ESA satellite. For this study, we performed experimental campaigns in two different irradiation facilities with protons and heavy ions, demonstrating the instrumentation capabilities, such as synchronization, high sampling rate, fast response time, and flexibility. Using this instrumentation, we could report the cross section for the observed SEEs and further investigate their correlation with the observed current behavior. Notably, it allowed us to identify that 95% of Single-Event Functional Interrupts (SEFIs) were triggered during SEL events.

Over the past years, the space industry has witnessed a steady increase in the amount of Commercial Off The Shelf components deployed in spacecrafts. The use of COTS components, however, requires an increased effort from quality control professionals, and specifically from Radiation Hardness Assurance (RHA) engineers. In fact, besides being less traceable, they can also occasionally introduce unusual failure modes, caused by the association of radiation effects paired with other environmental factors, such as temperature. Moreover, the absence of Radiation Hardening By Design makes these failure modes sometimes difficult to predict and characterize. This work investigates the combined effects of TID (Total Ionizing Dose) and temperature variations on an LT1521 LDO (Low Drop Out voltage regulator). Particular attention was paid to lot characterization, and general conclusions were drawn on the TID vs temperature characterization method. The LT1521 was found to be liable to a complete shutdown for TID levels higher than 20 krad(Si) and at cold enough temperatures. Finally, the likely root causes of this failure mode were identified in the circuit.

The increase of lower class satellite missions and the reduction of space launch costs increase the need for performant and affordable electronics with a short lead time. This leads to the increasing demand for Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) component usage in Space. Especially the selection of DC-DC buck converters is highly important considering their sensitivity to Destructive Single Event Effects which can lead to the loss of the regulated load or even a short on the power bus. In this paper, multiple modern COTS DC-DC buck converter ICs with integrated power MOSEFTs are tested against SEEs and their usability in Space is evaluated. Devices from various manufacturers and with different maximum input voltages were chosen. First promising results were gathered and therefore the derating capability as well as the overall SEE sensitivity is evaluated for these given COTS buck converters in Space. SEE testing showed not only DSEEs but also overvoltage conditions at the load as well as multiple Single Event Functional Interrupts and for some devices Single Event Latch-ups, all of which need consideration depending on their application in Space.