- Synthetic DNA enables precise nanoscale architecture for advanced memory devices
- The device operates at less than one-tenth of standard voltage levels
- By combining DNA and perovskite, highly efficient conducting channels are created
A research team at Penn State has developed a new type of memory device that combines synthetic DNA with perovskite semiconductors to achieve high storage density using very little power.
The device, known as a memristor, can remember the direction of previous current flow even after its power source is turned off.
This ability to store and process data in the same place mimics how neurons work in the brain, potentially enabling more efficient data processing.
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How DNA and perovskite work together in the device
The team applied silver nanoparticles to customized synthetic DNA sequences and integrated them with thin films of crystalline perovskite.
This process, called doping, enabled the DNA to conduct electricity while also orienting its units in a more streamlined fashion.
Unlike natural DNA, which behaves like long, tangled strands of wet spaghetti, short, rigid synthetic DNA fragments enable true architectural precision at the nanoscale.
“We can calculate exactly what sequences we need and how long they need to be, and then we can rationally design them with synthetic DNA,” said co-author Neela H. Yennawar.
The DNA and the perovskite co-developed bio-hybrid channels that funnel current through the device.
Since the team used less than 0.1 volts compared to 120 volts from a standard American outlet, electrons moved reliably through the system.
The device performed the same memory functions as existing technologies, but used only one-tenth the power, making it far more suitable for energy-efficient electronics.
It also performed consistently at temperatures up to nearly 250 degrees Fahrenheit and remained stable at room temperature for more than six weeks.
With these results, it far exceeds the performance standards of current perovskite-based memory storage devices.
“Using just the DNA or just the perovskite alone did not produce nearly as robust a result as the combination,” said Kavya Keremane.
“It is this combination that enables very high memory density that requires very little power.”
DNA is nature’s most efficient storage mechanism, capable of storing around 215 million GB of data per second. gram.
“Nature has the solution – we just have to find it and apply it,” said researcher Bed Poudel.
“This work to integrate DNA into electronics to do amazing things gives a glimpse of what’s possible.”
Applying this capability to electronics could enable more efficient data centers, faster data processing, and the ability to process far more complicated data.
The researchers have filed a patent application and plan to refine their approach while investigating other bio-inspired electronic applications.
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