Superconducting field-programmable gate array
A programmable circuit includes a superconducting multi-dimensional array. The programmable circuit further includes a plurality of photon detectors coupled to respective portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array, each photon detector configured to selectively provide input to a corresponding respective portion sufficient to transition the corresponding respective portion from a superconducting state to a non-superconducting state. The programmable circuit also includes one or more electrical terminals coupled to respective second portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array.
1. A programmable circuit, comprising:
a superconducting multi-dimensional array;
a plurality of photon detectors coupled to respective portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array, each photon detector configured to selectively provide input to a corresponding respective portion sufficient to transition the corresponding respective portion from a superconducting state to a non-superconducting state; and
one or more electrical terminals coupled to respective second portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array.
2. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein in a first configuration, the superconducting multi-dimensional array is configured to perform a logical operation.
3. The programmable circuit of claim 2 , wherein in a second configuration, the superconducting multi-dimensional array is configured to perform an additional logical operation that is different from the logical operation of the first configuration.
4. The programmable circuit of claim 3 , wherein the logical operation comprises one or more of: a logical AND operation; a logical OR operation; a majority gate operation; and an input counting operation.
5. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein the superconducting multi-dimensional array is a two-dimensional array.
6. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein the superconducting multi-dimensional array is patterned from a single thin film of superconducting material.
7. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , further comprising a current source coupled to the superconducting multi-dimensional array, the current source configured to provide a current to the superconducting multi-dimensional array.
8. The programmable circuit of claim 7 , wherein the current is adapted to maintain the superconducting multi-dimensional array in a superconducting state in the absence of a signal from the plurality of photon detectors.
9. The programmable circuit of claim 7 , wherein the current source is further configured to reset the superconducting multi-dimensional array after the superconducting multi-dimensional array transitions to a non-superconducting state.
10. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of photon detectors is electrically isolated from the superconducting multi-dimensional array.
11. The programmable circuit of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of photon detectors are positioned adjacent to the respective portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array.
12. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , further comprising a readout circuit coupled to one of the one or more electrical terminals.
13. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of input components coupled to respective third portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array, the plurality of input components configured to maintain the respective third portions in one or more steady states.
14. The programmable circuit of claim 13 , wherein the plurality of input components comprise a plurality of semiconductor components.
15. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , further comprising one or more reference nodes coupled to the one or more electrical terminals.
16. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein the respective portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array each have a width ranging from 50 nanometers to 5 microns.
17. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein the respective portions of the superconducting multi-dimensional array each have a length ranging from 200 nanometers to 2 microns.
18. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein the superconducting multi-dimensional array includes a first number of columns and a second number of rows, wherein the first number is different than the second number.
19. The programmable circuit of claim 1 , wherein a first set of columns of the superconducting multi-dimensional array have a first number of rows, and a second set of columns of the superconducting multi-dimensional array have a second number of rows, different from the first number.