Previous in Forum: Deep Borehole Nuclear Waste Disposal   Next in Forum: The Original Skunk Works Engineering Excellence
Close
Close
Close
4 comments
Rating: Comments: Nested
Guru

Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: About 4000 miles from the center of the earth (+/-100 mi)
Posts: 9917
Good Answers: 1142

Discovery of a 'Holy Grail' with the Invention of Universal Computer Memory

06/25/2019 8:26 PM

Today there are three types of semiconductor memory commonly used in computers. Static RAM is fast, but has a large footprint per cell. Dynamic RAM (DRAM) is fast and has a small footprint (high density) but needs to be periodically refreshed. Flash is slow but permanent and needs high voltage to store data.

A new type of memory has been developed which they claim can replace all three of these types.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-45370-1/figures/1

"A new type of computer memory to solve the digital technology energy crisis has been invented and patented by scientists. The device is the realization of the decades long search for a 'Universal Memory' to replace the $100 billion market for Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) and flash drives. It promises to transform daily life with its ultra-low energy consumption, allowing computers which do not need to boot up and which could sleep between key strokes."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190620100015.htm

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-45370-1

Register to Reply
Interested in this topic? By joining CR4 you can "subscribe" to
this discussion and receive notification when new comments are added.
Guru

Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: by the beach in Florida
Posts: 33392
Good Answers: 1817
#1

Re: Discovery of a 'holy grail' with the invention of universal computer memory

06/25/2019 11:58 PM

Still some bugs to be worked out, but it does look promising...

__________________
All living things seek to control their own destiny....this is the purpose of life
Register to Reply
Guru
Hobbies - DIY Welding - Wannabeabettawelda

Join Date: May 2007
Location: Annapolis, Maryland
Posts: 7942
Good Answers: 459
#2

Re: Discovery of a 'Holy Grail' with the Invention of Universal Computer Memory

06/26/2019 9:44 AM

Where !?!?

They said they've already got one.

Register to Reply Off Topic (Score 5)
Guru

Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: by the beach in Florida
Posts: 33392
Good Answers: 1817
#3
In reply to #2

Re: Discovery of a 'Holy Grail' with the Invention of Universal Computer Memory

06/26/2019 1:34 PM

..."This clearly demonstrates the non-destructive nature of the read operation. A clear differentiation between the “0” and “1” states is maintained throughout both sequences, although in Fig. 3b there is an undesirable, but almost symmetric, upward drift in IS-D as the number of operations increases. The reason for this requires further investigation, but is likely to be an asymmetry in the write-erase process, such that each erase removes slightly more charge from the FG than the write delivers."...

..."Fitting the data in Fig. 4 with double exponential decay functions reveals that the initial ‘fast’ component has a time constant of ~100 s, while the time constant for the ‘slow’ component is approximately an order of magnitude longer, for both states. The existence of double exponential decay implies that there are at least two mechanisms behind the degradation of the states. Candidates include tunnelling through defect states in the AlSb barriers, thermal excitation of electrons across the narrow InAs bandgap and recombination with thermally-generated holes. Crucially, the asymptotic values of the “1” and “0” states are 2.232 ± 0.0002 and 2.346 ± 0.0001 mA respectively, indicating that discernible “1” and “0” states could endure indefinitely, i.e. the data in Fig. 4 are consistent with non-volatility. We note that even though these states are clearly distinguishable in this experiment, a larger contrast is required for implementation in a practical device. "...

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-45370-1

__________________
All living things seek to control their own destiny....this is the purpose of life
Register to Reply
Guru
Hobbies - CNC - New Member Popular Science - Biology - New Member Hobbies - Musician - New Member

Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Canada
Posts: 3523
Good Answers: 146
#4

Re: Discovery of a 'Holy Grail' with the Invention of Universal Computer Memory

06/28/2019 9:00 PM

Well that's it.... I knew I was overdue for my storage media and cpu to become obsolete.

__________________
incus opella
Register to Reply
Register to Reply 4 comments
Copy to Clipboard

Users who posted comments:

artsmith (1); Brave Sir Robin (1); SolarEagle (2)

Previous in Forum: Deep Borehole Nuclear Waste Disposal   Next in Forum: The Original Skunk Works Engineering Excellence

Advertisement