Novel electronic hardware for pulse-mode neural circuits

A new approach to the electronic hardware implementation of pulse-mode neural circuits is described that is not based on the use of conventional transistors, but on a novel semiconductor device called a Multi-Quantum Well Injection Mode Diode (MQW-IMD). Described is the physics of the device´s operation and the device´s use in simple circuits which exhibit neural-like characteristics, i.e. pulse generation, a sigmoidal frequency-bias characteristic, and input signal integration and summation over multiple inputs with synaptic weighting including both excitatory and inhibitory capabilities. Preliminary experimental and simulation results are described