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The Synapse

The Synapse

Neurons communicate with one another by passing on their electrical signals to other neurons. A synapse is the location where two neurons meet to exchange signals. At the synapse, the neuron that sends the signal is called the presynaptic cell, while the neuron that receives the message is called the postsynaptic cell. Note that most neurons can be both presynaptic and postsynaptic, as they both transmit and receive information.

The Phosphorus Cycle

The Phosphorus Cycle

Unlike carbon, water, and nitrogen, phosphorus is not present in the atmosphere as a gas. Instead, most phosphorus in the ecosystem exists as compounds, such as phosphate ions (PO43-), found in soil, water, sediment and rocks. Phosphorus is often a limiting nutrient (i.e., in short supply). Consequently, phosphorus is added to most agricultural fertilizers, which can cause environmental problems related to runoff in aquatic ecosystems.

Detection of Black Holes

Detection of Black Holes

Although black holes were theoretically postulated in the 1920s, they remained outside the domain of observational astronomy until the 1970s.
Their closest cousins are neutron stars, which are composed almost entirely of neutrons packed against each other, making them extremely dense. A neutron star has the same mass as the Sun but its diameter is only a few kilometers. Therefore, the escape velocity from their surface is close to the speed of light.
Not until the 1960s, when the first neutron...

Chemical Synapses

Chemical Synapses

Chemical synapses are specialized sites between two neurons or between a neuron and a non-neuronal cell like a muscle, glandular or sensory cell.
Because chemical synapses depend on the release of neurotransmitter molecules from synaptic vesicles to pass on their signal, there is an approximately one millisecond delay between when the axon potential reaches the presynaptic terminal and when the neurotransmitter leads to opening of postsynaptic ion channels. Additionally, this signaling is...

Chemical Synapses

Chemical Synapses

Chemical synapses are specialized sites between two neurons or between a neuron and a non-neuronal cell like a muscle, glandular or sensory cell.
Because chemical synapses depend on the release of neurotransmitter molecules from synaptic vesicles to pass on their signal, there is an approximately one millisecond delay between when the axon potential reaches the presynaptic terminal and when the neurotransmitter leads to opening of postsynaptic ion channels. Additionally, this signaling is...

Electrical Synapses

Electrical Synapses

Electrical synapses found in all nervous systems play important and unique roles. In these synapses, the presynaptic and postsynaptic membranes are very close together (3.5 nm) and are actually physically connected by channel proteins forming gap junctions.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 25, 2026

Quantifying Synapses: an Immunocytochemistry-based Assay to Quantify Synapse Number

Quantifying Synapses: an Immunocytochemistry-based Assay to Quantify Synapse Number

Published on: November 16, 2010

Optically Stimulated Artificial Synapse Based on Layered Black Phosphorus.

Taimur Ahmed¹, Sruthi Kuriakose¹, Edwin L H Mayes²

¹Functional Materials and Microsystems Research Group and the Micro Nano Research Facility, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3001, Australia.

Small (Weinheim an Der Bergstrasse, Germany)

|April 25, 2019

Summary

Researchers developed novel optical synapses using black phosphorus to mimic brain functions. These low-power devices enable flexible, brain-inspired electronics without electric fields, paving the way for advanced neuromorphic computing.

Keywords:

artificial synapses bio-inspired electronics black phosphorus long-term plasticity neuromorphic computation photonic signal processing short-term plasticity

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Last Updated: Jan 25, 2026

Quantifying Synapses: an Immunocytochemistry-based Assay to Quantify Synapse Number

Quantifying Synapses: an Immunocytochemistry-based Assay to Quantify Synapse Number

Published on: November 16, 2010

Laboratory-determined Phosphorus Flux from Lake Sediments as a Measure of Internal Phosphorus Loading

Laboratory-determined Phosphorus Flux from Lake Sediments as a Measure of Internal Phosphorus Loading

Published on: March 6, 2014

Fiber-optic Implantation for Chronic Optogenetic Stimulation of Brain Tissue

Fiber-optic Implantation for Chronic Optogenetic Stimulation of Brain Tissue

Published on: October 29, 2012

Area of Science:

Materials Science
Neuroscience
Electronics Engineering

Background:

Mimicking biological synapses in hardware is crucial for brain-inspired electronics.
Existing synaptic devices often require polarity-altering electric fields or produce photonic, not electrical, outputs.
Optically-stimulated synaptic devices are needed for flexible and high-fidelity optogenetics-inspired circuits.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop all-optical synaptic devices that emulate biological synapse functions.
To overcome the limitations of existing synaptic hardware, particularly the need for electric fields.
To demonstrate cognitive and spatiotemporal processing capabilities using optical stimuli.

Main Methods:

Utilized the unique photoresponse of black phosphorus (BP) and its oxidation-related defects.
Developed an all-optical pathway to emulate excitatory and inhibitory action potentials.
Demonstrated functionalities on a flexible platform suitable for wearable electronics.

Main Results:

Achieved optical emulation of key neural functions, including learning, forgetting, and spike-time dependent plasticity.
Demonstrated spatiotemporally correlated dynamic logic.
Showcased device performance on a flexible substrate for potential wearable applications.

Conclusions:

The developed optical synapses offer a simple and powerful platform for emulating sophisticated neural functionalities.
These low-power consuming devices are highly attractive for neuromorphic architectures and wearable electronics.
All-optical emulation of cognition and spatiotemporal processing is achievable, advancing brain-inspired computing.