Photonic Memristor for Future Computing: A Perspective

Abstract Photonic computing and neuromorphic computing could address the inherent limitations of traditional von Neumann architecture and gradually invalidate Moore's law. As photonics applications are capable of storing and processing data in an optical manner with unprecedented bandwidth and high speed, two‐terminal photonic memristors with a remote optical control of resistive switching behaviors at defined wavelengths ensure the benefit of on‐chip integration, low power consumption, multilevel data storage, and a large variation margin, suggesting promising advantages for both photonic and neuromorphic computing. Herein, the development of photonic memristors is reviewed, as well as their application in photonic computing and emulation on optogenetics‐modulated artificial synapses. Different photoactive materials acting as both photosensing and storage media are discussed in terms of their optical‐tunable memory behaviors and underlying resistive switching mechanism with consideration of photogating and photovoltaic effects. Moreover, light‐involved logic operations, system‐level integration, and light‐controlled artificial synaptic memristors along with improved learning tasks performance are presented. Furthermore, the challenges in the field are discussed, such as the lack of a comprehensive understanding of microscopic mechanisms under light illumination and a general constraint of inferior near‐infrared (NIR) sensitivity.