R&D: Memlumor, Luminescent Memory Device for Energy-Efficient Photonic Neuromorphic Computing

ACS Energy Letters has published an article written by Alexandr Marunchenko, Chemical Physics and NanoLund, Lund University, P.O. Box 124, 22100 Lund, Sweden, and School of Physics and Engineering, ITMO University, 49 Kronverksky, St. Petersburg 197101, Russian Federation, Jitendra Kumar, Alexander Kiligaridis, Chemical Physics and NanoLund, Lund University, P.O. Box 124, 22100 Lund, Sweden, Dmitry Tatarinov, Anatoly Pushkarev, School of Physics and Engineering, ITMO University, 49 Kronverksky, St. Petersburg 197101, Russian Federation, Yana Vaynzof, Chair for Emerging Electronic Technologies, Technical University of Dresden, Nöthnitzer Str. 61, 01187 Dresden, Germany, and Leibniz-Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden, Helmholtzstraße 20, 01069 Dresden, Germany, and Ivan G. Scheblykin, Chemical Physics and NanoLund, Lund University, P.O. Box 124, 22100 Lund, Sweden.

Abstract: “Neuromorphic computing promises to transform the current paradigm of traditional computing toward non-von Neumann dynamic energy-efficient problem solving. To realize this, a neuromorphic platform must possess intrinsic complexity reflected in the built-in diversity of its physical operation mechanisms. We propose and demonstrate the concept of a memlumor, an all-photonic device combining memory and a luminophore, and being mathematically a full equivalence of the electrically driven memristor. Using CsPbBr₃ perovskites as a material platform, we demonstrate the synergetic coexistence of memory effects within a broad time scale from nanoseconds to minutes and switching energy down to 3.5 fJ. We elucidate the origin of such a complex response to be related to the phenomena of photodoping and photochemistry activated by a tunable light input. When the existence of a history-dependent photoluminescence quantum yield is leveraged in various material platforms, the memlumor device concept will trigger multiple new research directions in both material science and photonics.“