An inversion/non-inversion dynamic optically reconfigurable gate array VLSI

Up to now, an optically differential reconfigurable gate array taking a differential reconfiguration strategy and a dynamic optically reconfigurable gate array taking a photodiode memory architecture have been proposed. The differential reconfiguration strategy provides a higher reconfiguration frequency, with no increase in laser power, than other optically reconfigurable gate arrays, however the differential reconfiguration strategy can not achieve a high-gate-count VLSI because of the area occupied by the static configuration memory. On the other hand, the photodiode memory architecture can achieve a high-gate-count VLSI, but its configuration is slower than that of the optically differential reconfigurable gate array using equivalent laser power. So, this paper presents a novel inversion/non-inversion dynamic optically reconfigurable gate array VLSI that combines both architectures. It thereby achieves both advantages of rapid configuration and a high gate count. The experiments undertaken in this study clarify the effectiveness of the inversion/non-inversion optical configuration method.