Originally Posted by
Tomaski
If it a neutron makes a direct impact in the right spot, the kinetic energy gets deposited and can cause a change in the state of the bit. It doesn't need a charge to do so.
More precisely, due to not being charged, neutrons cannot change the state of a circuit by themselves.
But within an certain energy range, they can be captured by a nucleus in a semi-conductor, eventually provoking a nuclear fission with emission of charged particles (alpha, etc.) and gamma rays, which themselves may cause a change of electromagnetic state in a small scale semi-conductor.