Ion Channels and Electroosmosis in Porous Geopolymers: A Novel Category of Low-Cost Memristors |
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Authors: | Mahmudul Alam Shakib Zhaolin Gao Sebastiano Candamano Caterina Lamuta |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242 USA;2. Department of Mechanical, Energy and Management Engineering, University of Calabria, Arcavacata, Cosenza, 87030 Italy |
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Abstract: | Memristors are electric components that emulate the memory and computational properties of biological synapses by remembering the current that flows through them. Here, for the first time, the memristive properties of geopolymers, inexpensive ceramic materials manufactured at room temperature from alkaline activation of amorphous aluminosilicate precursors, are presented. It is demonstrated that geopolymers present all the fingerprints of memristors, and a physics-based model is proposed, which demonstrates that electroosmosis in the bulk geopolymer pores induces ion channels that foster change in the overall conductance of the bulk material, contributing to the observed memristive behavior. This model opens the door to a new category of porous electroosmosis-based bulk memristors. Synaptic functions such as short-term plasticity and long-term plasticity, as well as endurance and retention capabilities are also demonstrated. The reported findings pave the way to the use of geopolymers for low-cost applications in neuromorphic computing. |
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Keywords: | artificial synapse electro-osmosis geopolymers memristors |
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