- oint research team led by Professor Lim Sung-gab from KAIST and Professor Yoo Ho-cheon from Gachon University
- Achieves world-leading reliability of 60% in ternary logic operation
Image of the electronic component developed by the research team [Provided by KAIST]
[The Korea Herald=By Koo Bon-hyuk] KAIST announced on the 11th that a research team led by Professor Lim Sung-gab from the Department of Biological Sciences and Chemical Engineering and a research team led by Professor Yoo Ho-cheon from the Department of Electronic Engineering at Gachon University have succeeded in implementing a novel digital logic circuit with higher data processing efficiency and integration density through joint research.
Compared to binary logic circuits that use two logic states of 0 and 1, ternary logic circuits, which use three logic states of 0, 1, and 2, are the next-generation semiconductor technology for representing information. It can express the same information with fewer logic states, enabling higher efficiency in information processing and allowing for high-speed, low-power, and small-sized semiconductor chips. However, the commercialization of ternary logic circuits has been hindered by the difficulty of stably outputting all three logic signals due to the addition of one more logic state and the incompatibility between binary and ternary logic systems.
To solve this problem, the research team developed a new logic device that can adjust the output characteristics of ternary logic circuits in real-time during circuit operation. The research team focused on flash memory, a device that can store and erase information as needed in computers, and integrated flash memory into the logic device that constitutes the ternary logic circuit, enabling it to store information within the circuit itself. The research team confirmed that the output characteristics of logic state 1 can be systematically adjusted based on the information stored in the ternary logic circuit, thereby achieving the world's highest level of operational stability (noise margin) of up to approximately 60% in the ternary logic circuit.
Furthermore, by storing different information in each logic device that constitutes the logic circuit, the research team combined binary and ternary logic outputs, thus implementing logic circuits with various types of logic outputs. This also confirmed that the information processing efficiency and integration density of ternary logic circuits can be further improved.
The significance of the developed logic device lies in its ability to interconnect binary and ternary logic circuits within the same semiconductor chip, enabling data and signal transmission. It is highly anticipated to be a key technology in the initial stage of commercializing ternary semiconductors.
Professor Lim Sung-gab stated, "We have developed logic devices that can perform various operations and greatly simplify complex operations compared to conventional digital logic circuits." He added, "This research result is expected to provide useful guidelines for novel semiconductor devices in various fields such as artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things, which require large-scale information processing in the future."
The research results were published in the online edition of the international academic journal 'Nature Communications' on June 23.
https://n.news.naver.com/mnews/article/016/0002167789?sid=105
