Hopping-Transport Mechanism for Reconfigurable Logic in Disordered Dopant Networks

We present an atomic-scale mechanism based on variable-range hopping of interacting charges enabling reconfigurable logic in dopant network processing units. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations of the hopping process show temperature-dependent current-voltage characteristics and artificially evolved basic Boolean logic gates in very good agreement with experiment. The simulations provide unique insights into the local electrostatic potential and current flow in the dopant network, showing subtle changes induced by control voltages that set the conditions for the logic operation. These insights will be crucial in the systematic further development of this burgeoning technology for unconventional computing. The establishment of the principles underlying the logic functionality of these devices encourages the exploration and utilization of the same principles in other materials and device geometries.