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IPFS News Link • Science, Medicine and Technology

From the Labs: Materials

• Katherine Bourzac
 

A Memory and Logic Device
HP researchers demonstrate logic with memristors

Logic test: Arrays of memristors located where these electrical contacts converge can perform logic and memory functions.
Credit: Wei Wu

Source: " 'Memristive' switches enable 'stateful' logic operations via material implication"
R. Stanley Williams et al.
Nature 464: 873-876

Results: Researchers at Hewlett-­Packard have shown that nanoscale circuit elements called memristors, which have previously been made into memory devices, can perform full Boolean logic, the type used for computation in computer processors.

Why it matters: Memristor logic devices are about an order of magnitude smaller than devices made from transistors, so they could pack more computing power into a given space. Memristor arrays that perform both logic and memory functions could eliminate the need to transfer data between a processor and a hard drive in future computers, which would save energy.


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