Multiply accumulate operations in memristor crossbar arrays for analog computing

Memristors are now becoming a prominent candidate to serve as the building blocks of non-von Neumann inmemory computing architectures.By mapping analog numerical matrices into memristor crossbar arrays,efficient multiply accumulate operations can be performed in a massively parallel fashion using the physics mechanisms of Ohm’s law and Kirchhoff’s law.In this brief review,we present the recent progress in two niche applications:neural network accelerators and numerical computing units,mainly focusing on the advances in hardware demonstrations.The former one is regarded as soft computing since it can tolerant some degree of the device and array imperfections.The acceleration of multiple layer perceptrons,convolutional neural networks,generative adversarial networks,and long short-term memory neural networks are described.The latter one is hard computing because the solving of numerical problems requires high-precision devices.Several breakthroughs in memristive equation solvers with improved computation accuracies are highlighted.Besides,other nonvolatile devices with the capability of analog computing are also briefly introduced.Finally,we conclude the review with discussions on the challenges and opportunities for future research toward realizing memristive analog computing machines.

Simulation of Tert-Butyl Alcohol Forming Process by Slurry Catalytic Distillation with Custom Kinetic Program

Producing tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) by slurry catalytic distillation is a green new technology. In order to provide reference data for this production process, this paper applied advanced simulation software Aspen to simulate and optimize the slurry catalytic distillation process of producing TBA. And the kinetics equation of isobutylene hydration which is catalyzed by cation exchange resin in continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) is used to display the reaction process. Appropriate theoretical plate number of rectifying section, reaction section and stripping section, reflux ratio and liquid hold-up are obtained by the analog computation. Under this process condition, the conversion rate of isobutylene is 82.53%;the mole fraction of TBA in the bottom discharging is 82.5%.

Chip-Based High-Dimensional Optical Neural Network

Parallel multi-thread processing in advanced intelligent processors is the core to realize high-speed and high-capacity signal processing systems.Optical neural network(ONN)has the native advantages of high parallelization,large bandwidth,and low power consumption to meet the demand of big data.Here,we demonstrate the dual-layer ONN with Mach-Zehnder interferometer(MZI)network and nonlinear layer,while the nonlinear activation function is achieved by optical-electronic signal conversion.Two frequency components from the microcomb source carrying digit datasets are simultaneously imposed and intelligently recognized through the ONN.We successfully achieve the digit classification of different frequency components by demultiplexing the output signal and testing power distribution.Efficient parallelization feasibility with wavelength division multiplexing is demonstrated in our high-dimensional ONN.This work provides a high-performance architecture for future parallel high-capacity optical analog computing.

Photonic spin Hall effect:fundamentals and emergent applications

The photonic spin Hall effect(SHE)refers to the transverse spin separation of photons with opposite spin angular momentum,after the beam passes through an optical interface or inhomogeneous medium,manifested as the spin-dependent splitting.It can be considered as an analogue of the SHE in electronic systems:the light’s right-circularly polarized and left-circularly polarized components play the role of the spin-up and spin-down electrons,and the refractive index gradient replaces the electronic potential gradient.Remarkably,the photonic SHE originates from the spin-orbit interaction of the photons and is mainly attributed to two different geometric phases,i.e.,the spin-redirection Rytov-Vlasimirskii-Berry in momentum space and the Pancharatnam-Berry phase in Stokes parameter space.The unique properties of the photonic SHE and its powerful ability to manipulate the photon spin,gradually,make it a useful tool in precision metrology,analog optical computing and quantum imaging,etc.In this review,we provide a brief framework to describe the fundamentals and advances of photonic SHE,and give an overview on the emergent applications of this phenomenon in different scenes.

System Simulation Science and Simulation System Technology

This paper mainly discusses the following problems: the important meaning and special function of simulation system; the definition, contents and relationship of system and system simulation science; the definition and technology of simulation system and its equipments; and systematic description and exploration in relation to the developing trend of system simulation science and simulation system technology.

When optical microscopy meets all-optical analog computing:A brief review

As a revolutionary observation tool in life science,biomedical,and material science,optical microscopy allows imaging of samples with high spatial resolution and a wide field of view.However,conventional microscopy methods are limited to single imaging and cannot accomplish real-time image processing.The edge detection,image enhancement and phase visualization schemes have attracted great interest with the rapid development of optical analog computing.The two main physical mechanisms that enable optical analog computing originate from two geometric phases:the spin-redirection Rytov-Vlasimirskii-Berry(RVB)phase and the Pancharatnam-Berry(PB)phase.Here,we review the basic principles and recent research progress of the RVB phase and PB phase based optical differentiators.Then we focus on the innovative and emerging applications of optical analog computing in microscopic imaging.Optical analog computing is accelerating the transformation of information processing from classical imaging to quantum techniques.Its intersection with optical microscopy opens opportunities for the development of versatile and compact optical microscopy systems.