Ferroelectric Optical Memristors Enabled by Non‐Volatile Electro‐Optic Effect

Abstract Memristors enable non‐volatile memory and neuromorphic computing. Optical memristors are the fundamental element for programmable photonic integrated circuits due to their high‐bandwidth computing, low crosstalk, and minimal power consumption. Here, an optical memristor enabled by a non‐volatile electro‐optic (EO) effect, where refractive index modulation under zero field is realized by deliberate control of domain alignment in the ferroelectric material Pb(Mg 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 ‐PbTiO 3 (PMN‐PT) is proposed. The non‐volatile EO memristor is designed exclusively for the modulation of the optical phase without degrading the optical transparency, and it allows the support for deterministic and repeated non‐volatile multilevel EO states. A non‐volatile tunable waveplate composed of the optical memrisor for free‐space optics, which allows for deterministic multilevel, and non‐volatile phase shifts from 0 to π /2 is presented. The state switching rate of the memristor is less than 100 ms, with a switching energy consumption of 234 nJ, and the states can be retained for up to 12 h without requiring static power consumption. These results demonstrate a novel approach to fully realizing non‐volatile optical memristors, where only optical phase modulation is involved, providing unprecedented opportunities for the development of new ferroelectric memristors.