Bio-Optical Computing Devices: Multi-Valued Logic Elements via Photonic Bio-Materials

该项目的主要研究者旨在开发一种新型材料平台，用于超越当前基于生物材料的潜在强大生物计算。 量子计算一直被认为是下一代强大的计算，但目前依赖于在非自然环境（如极低温度）下工作的特定材料和现象。 除了原有的量子系统之外，具有多级逻辑元件的超级计算原理还可以通过探索新型物理现象和材料来扩展，以实现多级信号处理，从而大幅提高生产力。 这种方法需要进一步探索超越二元逻辑和传统经典无机结构和物理现象的原理。这些新颖的基于光子的计算逻辑元件将被认为是在这个项目中与未来的电子电路集成的能力。 本研究旨在为生物光子薄膜晶体管提供一个柔性、可弯曲、适形和可持续的平台，以及用于人机界面，具有巨大的并行处理能力，可用于皮肤、皮下和大脑使用的可穿戴和植入式生物电子器件。PI的教育理念侧重于学生个人本身和他们早期参与研究，这对于让学生进入可持续的研究生涯至关重要，本研究的重点是探索异质结构生物基光子材料作为有源介电层与不同波长活性有机半导体的设计和集成，以创建生物-有机场效应晶体管（BOFET）。 这些结构化的材料将是一个前瞻性的多值逻辑系统，可能使强大的生物计算的基础。所提出的研究的主要概念假设是，建议的鲁棒和灵活的手性生物衍生材料的独特的电子和光学特性，响应行为和光子特性与薄膜电子技术的集成可能会导致在未来可穿戴人机界面友好的生物电子学中在环境条件下具有上级计算性能的超多值逻辑BOFET器件的创建。本计划将进行三项主要研究工作：i）以具有手性结构的纤维素纳米晶体为材料，合成并制备具有生物光子响应特性的活性生物光子薄膜，并对不同光子能量、偏振态和相对湿度的外界光激发进行响应; ii）设计和制造在有机/无机界面处与有机半导体聚合物集成的有源介电层，并进一步与电子器件集成。相关的衬底，使BOFET具有独特的光电性能;和iii）可测试的设计，全尺寸的多功能BOFET原型设备作为一种新型的光子为基础的多值逻辑元件，具有高层次的逻辑操作，包括三进制和四进制逻辑值的潜力。 最后，PI将研究在可变光子能量、偏振和环境条件下的临界输出电子特性。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The principal investigator of this project aims to develop a novel materials platform for potentially powerful bio-computing beyond current semiconductor-based materials. Quantum computation has long been theorized to be the next generation powerful computing but currently relies on specific materials and phenomena that work at non-natural environment such as extremely low temperatures. Beyond original quantum systems, the principles of super-computing with multi-level logic elements can be expanded by exploring novel physical phenomena and materials to achieve multi-level signal processing with drastically increased productivity. This approach requires further exploration of principles beyond binary logic and traditional classical inorganic structures and physical phenomena. These novel photonic-based computational logic elements will be considered in this project with the ability to be integrated with future electronic circuits. This research is to provide a flexible, bendable, conformal and sustainable platform for bio-photonic thin film transistors, as for the human-machine interface, with enormous parallel processing abilities for wearable and implantable bioelectronic devices for skin, under-skin and brain use. The educational philosophy of the PI focuses on the individual students themselves and their early involvement in research, which is critical for getting students into sustainable research careers, especially young people from unrepresented groups.The focus of this research is the exploration of the design and integration of heterostructured bio-based photonic materials as active dielectric layers with different wavelength-active organic semiconductors to create bio-organic field-effect transistors (BOFET). These structured materials will be a base for a prospective multi-value logic system that may enable powerful bio-computing. The main conceptual hypothesis of the proposed research is the suggestion that the integration of unique electronic and optical properties, responsive behavior and photonic properties of robust and flexible chiral bio-derived materials with thin film electronic technology might lead to the creation of super-multi-value logic BOFET devices with superior computational performance at ambient conditions in future wearable human-interface friendly bioelectronics. Three major research tasks to be conducted in this project include: i) synthesis and fabrication of active biophotonic thin films from cellulose-nanocrystals with chiral nematic organization in conjunction with responsive photonic behavior as triggered by external illumination from different photon energies and polarizations and relative humidity; ii) design and fabrication of an active dielectric layer integrated with organic semiconducting polymers at an organic/inorganic interface and further integration with electronic-relevant substrates to enable BOFETs with unique opto-electronic properties; and iii) testable design of full-scale multifunctional BOFET prototype device as a novel photonic-based multi-value logic element with potential for high level logic operations including ternary and quaternary logic values. Finally, the PI will study critical output electronic characteristics at variable photon energy, polarization, and environmental conditions.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.