Science Forum

SuperNatendo · Posted: Sat May 03, 2008 4:09 pm Post subject:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memristor

In April 2008, a working device with similar characteristics to a memristor was announced by a team of researchers at HP Labs.[4][5][6] The new circuit element may enable the development of a new class of high-density non-volatile digital memory. Performance of memristors improves as they are scaled down, and they generate less heat than transistors. The memristor also has unique analog properties that may lead to the invention of other devices.

What does this mean for computers? A possible replacement for current ram technologies, both flash ram and SDRAM, which will enable pc's to retain data within RAM while powered off to allow for instant-on PCs.

Also, the circuits have a theoretical limit of 4 nanometers as opposed to the 25 nanometer barrier we will hit with current technologies.

Another neat feature is the ability for the ram to store more than binary data to better emulate the functions of brain synapses.
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â€œItâ€™s no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense.â€ - Mark Twain