Press release -
Brain cells inspire new computer components
Milan, 14 March 2023– Inspired by the brain’s energy efficiency, copying its structure to create more powerful computers, a team of researchers from Politecnico di Milano, Empa and ETH Zurich has developed a memristor that is more powerful and easier to produce than its predecessors: the results have been published in Science Advances.
The researchers are developing computer architectures inspired by the functioning of the human brain through new components that, like brain cells, combine data storage and processing. The new memristors are based on nanocrystals of halogenated perovskite, a semiconductor material known for the production of solar cells.
Although most people cannot do mathematical calculations with computer precision, humans can effortlessly process complex sensory information and learn from their experiences - a thing that no computer can (yet) do. And in doing so, the human brain consumes just half the energy of a laptop thanks to its structure in synapses, capable of both storing and processing information.
In computers, however, the memory is separate from the processor and data must be continuously transported between these two units. The transport speed is limited and this makes the whole computer slower when the amount of data is very large.
‘Our goal is not to replace the classic computer architecture.’ - explainsDaniele Ielmini, professor at Politecnico di Milano - ‘Rather, we want to develop alternative architectures that can perform certain tasks faster and more energy-efficiently. This includes, for example, the parallel processing of large amounts of data; today this happens everywhere, from agriculture to space exploration.’
Based on the measurements, the researchers simulated a complex computational task that corresponds to a learning process in the visual cortex of the brain. The task was to determine the orientation of a light bar based on signals from the retina.
‘Halide perovskites conduct both ions and electrons.’ - clarifies Rohit John, postdoc at ETH Zurich and Empa - ‘This dual conductivity allows for more complex calculations that are more similar to brain processes.’
The technology is not ready for use yet and simply manufacturing the new memristors makes integrating them with existing computer chips difficult: perovskites cannot handle the 400-500 °C temperatures needed for silicon processing - at least not yet.
There are also other materials with similar properties that could be considered for the production of high performance memristors. ‘We can test the results of our memristor system with different materials,’ says Alexander Milozzi, Ph.D candidate at Politecnico di Milano - ‘probably some of them are more suitable for integration with silicon.’
Article: RA John, A Milozzi, S Tsarev, R Brönnimann, SC Boehme, E Wu, I Shorubalko, MV Kovalenko, D Ielmini; Ionic-electronic halide perovskite memdiodes enabling neuromorphic computing with a second-order complexity; Science Advances (2022) https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.ade0072
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Politecnico di Milano is a scientific-technological university which trains engineers, architects and industrial designers.
The University has always focused on the quality and innovation of its teaching and research, developing a fruitful relationship with business and productive world by means of experimental research and technological transfer.
Research has always been linked to didactics and it is a priority commitment which has allowed Politecnico Milano to achieve high quality results at an international level as to join the university to the business world. Research constitutes a parallel path to that formed by cooperation and alliances with the industrial system.
Knowing the world in which you are going to work is a vital requirement for training students. By referring back to the needs of the industrial world and public administration, research is facilitated in following new paths and dealing with the need for constant and rapid innovation. The alliance with the industrial world, in many cases favored by Fondazione Politecnico and by consortiums to which Politecnico belong, allows the university to follow the vocation of the territories in which it operates and to be a stimulus for their development.
The challenge which is being met today projects this tradition which is strongly rooted in the territory beyond the borders of the country, in a relationship which is developing first of all at the European level with the objective of contributing to the creation of a single professional training market. Politecnico takes part in several research, sites and training projects collaborating with the most qualified European universities. Politecnico's contribution is increasingly being extended to other countries: from North America to Southeast Asia to Eastern Europe. Today the drive to internationalization sees Politecnico Milano taking part into the European and world network of leading technical universities and it offers several courses beside many which are entirely taught in English.
