Beijing is betting on carbon for the microchips of tomorrow

Two Chinese universities are experimenting with a new device that replaces silicon wafers by adopting a revolutionary ternary system. Tests show a significant reduction in energy consumption for the calculations required by artificial intelligence. The stated goal is to make it the reference technology within 10-15 years.

Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – A new type of microchip based on carbon instead of silicon. It is able to perform artificial intelligence (AI) tasks with less energy expenditure using an innovative ternary logic system, instead of the binary one.

It is the latest result of Chinese research on semiconductor technology, which Peking University and BUPT (the university of the Post and Telecommunications) announce as a revolutionary breakthrough for the future of integrated circuits.

The new chip uses carbon nanotubes (CNT), a material that offers exceptional mechanical and electrical properties: they are tiny cylindrical tubes made from graphene sheets and until now have been used mainly as conductive additives in lithium-ion batteries.

However, what characterises the new microchip is above all the use of ternary logic instead of the traditional binary system: it processes data not only in codes based on 0 and 1, but also in a third state, which allows calculations to be carried out more quickly while consuming less energy. The ternary logic system would therefore improve the efficiency of data transmission within the same physical space.

To test the capabilities of their new chip, the researchers built a neural network that mimics the connections between neurons in the human brain. More in-depth experiments revealed that the CNT-based network achieved perfect accuracy in classifying handwritten digits, demonstrating its vast potential for artificial intelligence applications, including image recognition and machine learning tasks.

China is at the forefront of global research into carbon-based semiconductor technology. Despite their many advantages, CNT-based chips still lag behind traditional silicon chips in terms of integration density. But the experts working on the project say their goal is to make them the most widespread technology within the next 10 to 15 years.