Data for: Neuromorphic weighted sums with magnetic skyrmions

Description

The following experimental data were obtained on lithography devices made of magnetic multilayer tracks and thin tantalum transverse electrodes by Kerr microscopy and anomalous Hall effect measurements. The results, demonstrating the weighted sum operation using magnetic skyrmions, are published in T. da Câmara Santa Clara Gomes et al., Neuromorphic weighted sums with magnetic skyrmions, Nature Electronics (2024). Please find in the README additional information regarding the data files and the variables.

Abstract

Integrating magnetic skyrmions into neuromorphic computing could help improve hardware efficiency and computational power. However, developing a scalable implementation of the weighted sum of neuron signals — a core operation in neural networks — has remained a challenge. Here, we show that weighted sum operations can be performed in a compact, biologically-inspired manner by using the non-volatile and particle-like characteristics of magnetic skyrmions that make them easily countable and summable. The skyrmions are electrically generated in numbers proportional to the input with an efficiency given by a non-volatile weight. The chiral particles are then directed using localized current injections to a location where their presence is quantified through non-perturbative electrical measurements. Our experimental demonstration, which currently has two inputs, can be scaled to accommodate multiple inputs and outputs using a crossbar array design, potentially nearing the energy efficiency observed in biological systems.