Optical polarization for ultrafast computing
LOOP aims to create an ultrafast optical Ising machine using light polarization to solve NP-hard optimization problems in microseconds, surpassing current digital and analog hardware speeds.
Projectdetails
Introduction
Computing impacts every aspect of modern science and society. Von-Neumann computers are inefficient in addressing important combinatorial optimizations widespread from networks to artificial intelligence. Finding alternative paradigms to tackle these intractable problems is now vital as digital hardware approaches its ultimate performance limit.
Background
A promising strategy maps the optimization in spin models implemented on a physical setup that evolves as a spin system to the solution. This fascinating scheme has recently attracted huge interest, leading to various electronic and optical Ising machines that, however, remain challenging to scale and speed up.
Project Overview
LOOP is an experimental proposal that aims at creating ultrafast optical hardware for combinatorial optimization by exploiting the polarization of light. The optical polarization is a new ingredient in computing that is absent in electronics.
Concept
The original idea is to use the polarization as an ultrafast nonlinear oscillator that encodes the spin. We demonstrate the concept by controlling polarization bifurcation in third-order nonlinear crystals by electro-optics, enabling a low-power computing mechanism that operates at picoseconds.
Goals
The main goal is the realization of a polarization Ising machine that solves NP-hard optimization problems with thousands of spins in microseconds. The all-optical machine operates orders-of-magnitude faster than state-of-the-art digital and analog hardware.
Features
- The scheme is fully parallel and scalable by combining polarization dynamics with spatial light modulation.
- The vectorial nature of the polarization allows surpassing the binary operation of Ising machines.
- We exploit orbits on the Poincaré sphere to realize an ultrafast XY machine for continuous optimization, opening a new direction in optical computing.
Interdisciplinary Approach
LOOP is an interdisciplinary program that spans from nonlinear optics to complex science to establish a new computing paradigm for optimization in the post-Moore's law era.
Financiële details & Tijdlijn
Financiële details
Subsidiebedrag | € 1.499.928 |
Totale projectbegroting | € 1.499.928 |
Tijdlijn
Startdatum | 1-9-2025 |
Einddatum | 31-8-2030 |
Subsidiejaar | 2025 |
Partners & Locaties
Projectpartners
- UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI ROMA LA SAPIENZApenvoerder
Land(en)
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Optoelectronic and all-optical hyperspin machines for large-scale computing
HYPERSPIM develops ultrafast photonic machines for large-scale combinatorial optimization, enhancing efficiency in classical and quantum computing for complex real-world problems.
Coherent Steering of Order via Lattice Resonances
This project aims to explore the use of circularly-polarized optical phonons for efficient and ultrafast switching of magnetization, potentially revolutionizing data recording and processing.
Antiferromagnetic Spin Transport With Relativistic Waves
ASTRAL aims to generate ultrashort large-amplitude spin wave pulses in antiferromagnets to unlock THz magnonics for scalable, nearly lossless computing technologies.
SPINTOP
SPINTOP aims to develop fast, scalable, energy-efficient, and affordable Ising Machines using spin Hall nano-oscillators to effectively tackle complex combinatorial optimization problems.
Optical Entanglement of Nuclear Spins in Silicon
OpENSpinS aims to enhance silicon-based quantum information processing by using erbium nuclear spins as qubits, enabling long-distance entanglement and scalable quantum networks through advanced photonic integration.
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