Tech Briefs Magazine - April 2024 - 28

A Two-in-One Storage and Computing Device
An all-in-one semiconductor device has the potential to both store data and perform computations.
Penn State University, University Park, PA
A
multi-institutional project led by a
Penn State researcher is focused
on developing an all-in-one semiconductor
device that can both store data
and perform computations. The project
recently received $2 million in funding
over three years as part of the new
National Science Foundation Future of
Semiconductors (FuSe) program, a
$45.6 million investment to advance
semiconductor technologies and manufacturing
through 24 research and education
projects across the United
States.
" The goal of the program is to support
innovation in semiconductors,
which we need to address rapidly approaching
limitations of current technology, "
said Principal Investigator Saptarshi
Das, Associate Professor of
Engineering Science and Mechanics in
Penn State's College of Engineering.
Microchip technology, crucial for computing
and data storage in a wide range of
advanced devices from smartphones to
electric vehicles, has historically advanced
to accommodate a doubling of transistor
capacity approximately every two years.
This phenomenon is known as Moore's
Law. However, Moore's Law reached a
standstill almost a decade ago, constrained
by what Das called the inherent limitations
of the prevailing materials and techniques.
According to Das, stagnation in Moore's
Law only accounts for making the transistors
smaller.
Saptarshi Das will lead a multi-institution team to develop
an all-in-one semiconductor device that can both
store data and perform computations. (Image: Tyler
Henderson/Penn State)
" Another major problem in the semiconductor
architecture is you have to get
data from the memory, make the computation
and put the data back, " Das said. " This
shuttling consumes a lot of power. Can we
do it in the same device? "
Das teamed up with co-principal investigators
Ritesh Agarwal and Deep Jariwala,
both at the University of Pennsylvania.
Agarwal and Jariwala had developed new
semiconducting materials comprising various
phases of indium selenide that Das said
they thought might be able to bridge the
gap between storage and computation in a
single device.
To help address how transistors based on
these novel materials might fit into the existing
confines of technology, they
brought in Yale University's Priyadarshini
Panda, who specializes in artificial
intelligence and its application across
full systems.
" Ferroelectric materials are dipoles,
pointing up or down, that can be
changed by applying a voltage - it's a
natural storage device with two stages, "
Das said. " Ferroelectric materials typically
can't be gated - or partially
turned off - like semiconductors,
when you stop the material's conductance
to control information or energy
flow. But this ferroelectric material is a
semiconductor, so it can be gated. "
The researchers said they plan to
use this material to develop a new
two-in-one storage and computing
device that can integrate with standard
silicon chips at the back end. This
would help with quicker implementation,
since the new devices could work
with existing systems, according to Das.
That would also set the stage for developing
and manufacturing more neuromorphic
computing devices, which mimic
the energy saving and unique storage
abilities of the human brain.
" This material will let us capture the
best of both worlds: storage and computation, "
Das said. " That opens up the
possibilities, and that's why we're so excited
about this project. "
For more information, contact
communications@engr.psu.edu.
4D Printing of Smart Materials with Electromechanical
Properties
A new 4D printer opens the door to the design of soft robots or smart sensors that transmit
signals to different cellular systems.
Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
R
28
esearchers at Universidad Carlos III
de Madrid (UC3M) have created
software and hardware for a 4D printer
with applications in the biomedical
field. In addition to 3D printing, this
machine allows for controlling extra
functions: programming the material's
response so that shape-changing
occurs under external magnetic field,
or changes in its electric properties develops
under mechanical deformation.
This research line focuses on the development
of soft multifunctional structures,
which consist of materials with mechanical
properties that mimic biological
tissues such as the brain or skin. In addition,
they can change their shape or
properties when actuated via external
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stimuli, such as magnetic fields or electric
currents.
Until now, this team of researchers
had made several advances in the design
and manufacturing of these structures,
but they were very limited in
terms of shape-design and programming
of intelligent responses. The
work presented in their latest study,
Tech Briefs, April 2024

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