K4 Evaluation platform
In project K4, AMOtronics together with ZEA-2 of Forschungszentrum Jülich is exploring approaches and possibilities to verify and present the potential of the demonstrator systems from the Demonstrator Project (DP). In the form of evaluation platforms for the neuromorphic chips developed in NEUROTEC-II, the approaches are technically realized.
In parallel to the integration stages of the demonstrator systems (D0, D1/D2), two generations of evaluation platforms (E0, E1) are created, which build on each other technically and functionally. The complexity of evaluation platforms and demonstrator systems runs anti-parallel. While the first generation of the evaluation platform (E0) with analog interface (AD/DA) to the memristive demonstrator system (D0) is highly complex, the interface can be largely reduced to digital signals with increasing integration of CMOS technology and thus digital interfaces in the demonstrator systems (D1, D2) of the subsequent generations.
The functional scope of the demonstrator systems of later generations must also be taken into account as early as the specification of the evaluation platforms in order to avoid duplicate developments or dead ends. Reconfigurable solutions must be found and used. Programmable electronic devices such as FPGAs and microcontrollers offer particularly high flexibility. An FPGA (acronym for Field Programmable Gate Array) is a highly integrated digital circuit that can be programmed with complex logic circuits. The program flow is completely parallel. In contrast, a microcontroller processes the programmed software sequentially. Both components are characterized by highest flexibility and allow efficient development processes.
With the evaluation platforms for demonstrator systems of the different technology stages, a novel platform for the specific evaluation of the memristive properties is created over several iterations in parallel to the generations of the memristive devices themselves.
The evaluation platforms will be available to the different work packages for the characterization of the demonstrator systems.
