Will develop components for computers operated by light

Imagine a computer that does not need electricity but is instead operated by light – this is the vision of Wallenberg Academy Fellow Nicolò Maccaferri. He is developing components that could build the light-operated computers of the future. These have the potential to be much faster, more energy-efficient and smaller than current computers. 

Altogether, the world’s electronic gadgets consume vast amounts of power. This need for power will grow, in particular in view of the increasing use of AI and quantum information, which are often energy intensive. There is even a risk that a lack of power will slow down the development of AI and quantum information.     

To reduce computers’ high energy requirements, Dr Nicolò Maccaferri from Umeå University is investigating the potential to create computers operated by light. His work builds upon metamaterials, artificial materials with unique physical properties, which are predicted to be customizable so they have functions that could replace today’s more energy-consuming components. 

Nicolò Maccaferri will use metamaterials to control the so-called photoswitches, molecules that can act as optical transistors and logic gates in the light-operated computers of the future. Nicolò Maccaferri will also investigate how the structure of light pulses affect metamaterials’ magnetic properties. The aim is to develop an entirely new and more energy-efficient way of storing and processing data, so reducing the environmental impact of our digital world.  

Photo Patrik Lundin