PChem Seminar: Brain-inspired nanofluidics
Abstract: The brain processes information using solvated ions, achieving an energy efficiency orders of magnitude higher than that of man-made electronic computers. This remarkable performance has recently inspired efforts to perform computation using artificial ionic channels with nanoscale dimensions. In this presentation, I will give an overview of the emergence of this research field. I will first introduce approaches for device fabrication and for the characterization of their surface properties. I will then present nanofluidic memory effects and synapse-like dynamics, and discuss their underlying mechanisms revealed by direct imaging, as well as the first demonstrations of neuromorphic nanofluidic logic. Finally, I will discuss possible future directions for the field in order to move towards large-scale ionic computing.
Bio: Theo Emmerich studied mechanical engineering at EPFL and ETHZ. He did his Ph.D. under the supervision of Lyderic Bocquet on the topic of two dimensional ionic transport. He then moved back to EPFL for a postdoc with Aleksandra Radenovic on the topic of brain-inspired nanofluidics. Since 2025, he is a CNRS researcher at ENS Lyon.
Bio: Theo Emmerich studied mechanical engineering at EPFL and ETHZ. He did his Ph.D. under the supervision of Lyderic Bocquet on the topic of two dimensional ionic transport. He then moved back to EPFL for a postdoc with Aleksandra Radenovic on the topic of brain-inspired nanofluidics. Since 2025, he is a CNRS researcher at ENS Lyon.
Practical information
- Informed public
- Free
Organizer
- Nikita Kavokine
Contact
- Gwenaëlle Caccivio, Nikita Kavokine