Functional Oxides for Photoneuromorphic Engineering: Toward a Solar Brain

New device concepts and new computing principles are needed to balance our ever‐growing appetite for data and information with the realization of the goals of increased energy efficiency, reduction in CO2 emissions, and the circular economy. Neuromorphic or synaptic electronics is an emerging field of research aiming to overcome the current computer's Von‐Neumann bottleneck by building artificial neuronal systems to mimic the extremely energy efficient biological synapses. The introduction of photovoltaic and/or photonic aspects into these neuromorphic architectures will produce self‐powered adaptive electronics but may also open new possibilities in artificial neuroscience, artificial neural communications, sensing, and machine learning which would enable, in turn, a new era for computational systems owing to the possibility of attaining high bandwidths with much reduced power consumption. This perspective is focused on recent progress in the implementation of functional oxide thin‐films into photovoltaic and neuromorphic applications toward the envisioned goal of self‐powered photovoltaic neuromorphic systems or a solar brain. Here, an overview is presented of the implementation of oxide functional thin‐films in photovoltaic and neuromorphic technologies with the envisioned goal of producing adaptive autonomous photonic systems in the future. The successful implementation of photoneuromorphic systems will also open new possibilities in artificial neuroscience, artificial neural communications, sensing, and machine learning enabling a new era for computational systems.