Prismatic optical logic circuits

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10459312-B2
Application number	US-201816124380-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 7, 2018
Priority date	Feb 23, 2017
Publication date	Oct 29, 2019
Grant date	Oct 29, 2019

Abstract

A media-defined optical logic circuit composed of a set of light-transmitting polyhedral prisms arranged so that a pair of adjacent prisms can exchange photonic signals through adjacent surfaces. Each prism contains one or more quantum dots that, when excited by a photonic signal received from an adjacent prism, respond by emitting light that becomes an incoming photonic signal for an adjacent prism. Photonic signals are propagated through the circuit in this manner along light-guide paths created by shading certain surfaces to render them fully or partially opaque. The prisms and shading are arranged such that the circuit performs a certain logic function. When the circuit receives a set of photonic input signals representing a binary input value, the circuit responds by emitting a set of photonic output signals that represent a binary output value determined by performing the logic function upon the binary input value.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A media-defined optical logic circuit capable of performing a logical operation, the circuit comprising:
a set of polyhedral prisms physically arranged such that each prism of the set of polyhedral prisms is adjacent to at least one other prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where a quantum dot is embedded into each prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where a first prism of the set of polyhedral prisms is adjacent to a second prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where the second prism is adjacent to a third prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where a sufficiently energetic first photonic signal generated by a quantum dot embedded into the first prism is capable of exciting a second quantum dot embedded into the second prism to emit a second photonic signal capable of exciting a third quantum dot embedded into the third prism to emit a third photonic signal,
where each emitted photonic signal represents a binary value of a logic function,
where the physical arrangement of the set of polyhedral prisms is chosen so as to route photonic signals emitted by the set of polyhedral prisms along paths that represent operations of the binary logic function,
where the physical arrangement of the set of polyhedral prisms is chosen so as allow the circuit to receive a set of photonic input signals through surfaces of one or more input prisms of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where the physical arrangement of the set of polyhedral prisms is chosen so as allow the circuit to emit a set of photonic output signals through circuit-output surfaces of one or more circuit-output prisms of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where one or more surfaces of the first prism are completely or partially shaded,
where a completely shaded surface completely blocks a photonic signal and a partially shaded surface attenuates a photonic signal to a degree proportional to the degree of partial shading,
where each shaded surface is selected so as to configure the photonic signal paths or the circuit to represent logical elements of the binary logic operation,
where a single attenuated signal cannot excite a quantum dot, embedded into a fourth prism of the set of polyhedral prisms, to emit a photonic signal if the attenuated signal's degree of attenuation exceeds a predetermined attenuation value, and
where multiple signals entering the fourth prism excite the quantum dot embedded into the fourth prison to emit a photonic signal if the combined intensity of the multiple signals exceeds a predetermined light-intensity value.

2. The circuit of claim 1 , where a first photonic signal represents a bit of a binary data, and where an intensity of the first photonic signal determines a state of the bit of binary data.

3. The circuit of claim 1 , further comprising:
a switch prism of the set of polyhedral prisms, physically adjacent to one or more signal-generating prisms of the set of polyhedral prisms, that is capable of responding to a photonic switching signal, received through a switching-input surface of the switch prism, by selectively blocking photonic signals received, through signal-input surfaces of the switch prism, from the one or more signal-generating prisms.

4. The circuit of claim 3 , where the switch prism performs a logical NOT operation upon a logical element represented by a single photonic data signal received from a single adjacent prism of the one or more signal-generating prisms.

5. The circuit of claim 1 ,
where an intensity of light emitted by an excited quantum dot embedded into a prism of the set of polyhedral prisms is determined by one or more physical characteristics of the excited quantum dot, and
where the one or more physical characteristics of the excited quantum dot are selected from the group consisting of: a physical dimension of the excited quantum dot, a material of composition of the excited quantum dot, and a shape of the excited quantum dot.

6. A method of forming an optical logic circuit, the method comprising:
physically arranging a set of polyhedral prisms such that each prism of the set of polyhedral prisms is adjacent to at least one other prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where a quantum dot is embedded into each prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where a first prism of the set of polyhedral prisms is adjacent to a second prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where the second prism is adjacent to a third prism of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where a sufficiently energetic first photonic signal generated by a quantum dot embedded into the first prism is capable of exciting a second quantum dot embedded into the second prism to emit a second photonic signal capable of exciting a third quantum dot embedded into the third prism to emit a third photonic signal,
where each emitted photonic signal represents a binary value of a logic function,
where the physical arrangement of the set of polyhedral prisms is chosen so as to route photonic signals emitted by the set of polyhedral prisms along paths that represent operations of the binary logic function,
where the physical arrangement of the set of polyhedral prisms is chosen so as allow the circuit to receive a set of photonic input signals through surfaces of one or more input prisms of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where the physical arrangement of the set of polyhedral prisms is chosen so as allow the circuit to emit a set of photonic output signals through circuit-output surfaces of one or more circuit-output prisms of the set of polyhedral prisms,
where one or more surfaces of the first prism are completely or partially shaded,
where a completely shaded surface completely blocks a photonic signal and a partially shaded surface attenuates a photonic signal to a degree proportional to the degree of partial shading,
where each shaded surface is selected so as to configure the photonic signal paths or the circuit to represent logical elements of the binary logic operation,
where a single attenuated signal cannot excite a quantum dot, embedded into a fourth prism of the set of polyhedral prisms, to emit a photonic signal if the attenuated signal's degree of attenuation exceeds a predetermined attenuation value, and
where multiple signals entering the fourth prism excite the quantum dot embedded into the fourth prison to emit a photonic signal if the combined intensity of the multiple signals exceeds a predetermined light-intensity value.

7. The method of claim 6 , where a first photonic signal represents a bit of a binary data, and where an intensity of the first photonic signal determines a state of the bit of binary data.

8. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:
a switch prism of the set of polyhedral prisms, physically adjacent to one or more signal-generating prisms of the set of polyhedral prisms, that is capable of responding to a photonic switching signal, received through a switching-input surface of the switch prism, by selectively blocking photonic signals received, through signal-input surfaces of the switch prism, from the one or more signal-generating prisms.

9. The method of claim 8 , where the switch prism performs a logical NOT operation upon a logical element represented by a single photonic data signal received from a single adjacent prism of the one or more signal-generating prisms.

10. A method of using an optical logic circuit, the method comprising:
submitting to the optical logic circuit, by means of external light sources, a set of photonic circuit-input signals,
where the optical logic circuit comprises a set of polyhedral prisms physically arranged such that each prism of the set of polyhedral prisms is adjacent to at least one other prism of the set of polyhedral

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• Barquero Garro Pablo F
• Golcher Ricardo A
• Liebinger Franz F
• Nunez Meller J P

Classifications

• G02B5/045

  Prism arrays · CPC title

• B82Y10/00

  Nanotechnology for information processing, storage or transmission, e.g. quantum computing or single electron logic · CPC title

• G02F2202/36

  Micro- or nanomaterials · CPC title

• G02F3/00 Primary

  Optical logic elements; Optical bistable devices · CPC title

• Y10S977/774

  Exhibiting three-dimensional carrier confinement, e.g. quantum dots · CPC title