Fudan University Breaks Records with Ultra-Fast Non-Volatile Memory Ideal for Artificial Intelligence Applications
Researchers at Fudan University in Shanghai have announced the development of the fastest Flash memory in the world, marking an unprecedented milestone in the history of computing. Dubbed PoX (Phase-change Oxide), this new type of non-volatile memory is capable of performing write operations in just 400 picoseconds, or 0.0000000004 seconds. To put it in perspective, it is about 300 billion times faster than the human blink, which takes approximately 300 milliseconds.
This breakthrough represents a giant leap over traditional memories. SRAM and DRAM, widely used today, write data in times ranging from 1 to 10 nanoseconds, but their volatile nature means they lose all information when powered off. In contrast, NAND Flash memories, found in SSDs and USB drives, retain data without power, but their speeds range from microseconds to milliseconds, making them inadequate for high-demand real-time tasks required by Artificial Intelligence (AI).
PoX: The Technological Leap into a New Era of Computing
The PoX chip developed at Fudan combines two key advantages: non-volatility and ultra-fast switching speed, far surpassing the previous writing record of 2 million operations per second. Its performance positions it as an ideal candidate to eliminate the bottleneck currently limiting AI systems, where most energy consumption is dedicated to data movement rather than processing.
One of the key elements for this advancement has been abandoning traditional silicon as the base material. Instead, the team led by Professor Zhou Peng turned to two-dimensional Dirac graphene, renowned for its ability to facilitate fast and unrestricted charge flow.
Additionally, the researchers optimized the internal architecture by adjusting the Gaussian length of the memory channel, enabling a phenomenon called 2D superinjection, where electrons move almost limitlessly into the storage layer. This nearly eliminates any speed constraints typical of conventional memories.
An Exclusive Product for AI?
Although details regarding its commercialization have yet to be revealed, all signs point to this technology being primarily destined for the field of Artificial Intelligence. Thanks to its low energy consumption and extraordinary write speed, PoX could be integrated into future AI systems, accelerating both the training and inference of complex models.
“The increase in speed is a significant breakthrough that completely overcomes a theoretical bottleneck of current storage technology frameworks,” explained Liu Chunsen, a researcher at the State Key Laboratory of Chips and Integrated Systems at Fudan University.
“By using AI algorithms to optimize the test conditions of the process, we have made significant progress in this innovation and paved the way for its future applications,” he added.
In Summary
This development places China at the forefront of memory technology, a strategic sector for technological autonomy and the advancement of artificial intelligence. Although it will take time for this technology to reach commercial devices, its potential to transform the performance of high-level systems is undeniable.
PoX memory could be the catalyst that redefines the limits of modern computing.
Source: Bastille Post