Multiplexing in photonics as a resource for optical ternary content-addressable memory functionality

Yanir London, Thomas Van Vaerenbergh, Luca Ramini, Antoine Descos, Luca Buonanno, Jinsung Youn, Can Li, Catherine E. Graves, Marco Fiorentino, Raymond G. Beausoleil

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

In this paper, we combine a Content-Addressable Memory (CAM) encoding scheme previously proposed for analog electronic CAMs (E-CAMs) with optical multiplexing techniques to create two new photonic CAM architectures - wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) optical ternary CAM (O-TCAM) and time-division multiplexing (TDM) O-TCAM. As an example, we show how these two O-TCAM schemes can be implemented by performing minor modifications in microring-based silicon photonic (SiPh) circuits originally optimized for exascale interconnects. Here, our SiPh O-TCAM designs include not only the actual search engine, but also the transmitter circuits. For the first time, we experimentally demonstrate O-TCAM functionality in SiPh up to ∼ 4 Gbps and we prove in simulation feasibility for speeds up to 10 Gbps, 10 times faster than typical E-TCAMs at the expense of higher energy consumption per symbol of our O-TCAM Search Engine circuits than the corresponding E-TCAMs. Finally, we identify which hardware and architecture modifications are required to improve the O-CAM's energy efficiency towards the level of E-CAMs.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4147-4165
Number of pages19
JournalNanophotonics
Volume12
Issue number22
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Nov 2023
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • energy efficiency
  • integrated photonics
  • silicon photonics
  • ternary content-addressable memory
  • time division multiplexing
  • wavelength division multiplexing

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biotechnology
  • Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
  • Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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