Radiation hardening

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In electronics engineering and computer science, radiation hardening is the process of making electronic components and computer systems resistant to damage or malfunction caused by high levels of ionizing radiation (particle radiation and high-energy electromagnetic radiation), especially for environments in outer space (especially beyond low Earth orbit), around nuclear reactors and particle accelerators, or during nuclear accidents or nuclear warfare. Modern computer systems are based on microprocessors, which are integrated circuits manufactured as semiconductor devices. These components are susceptible to radiation damage, and radiation-hardened (rad-hard) components are based on their non-hardened equivalents, with some design and manufacturing variations that reduce the susceptibility to radiation damage. Due to the low demand and the extensive development and testing required to produce a radiation-tolerant design of a microelectronic chip, the technology of radiation-hardened chips...

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