Promotion of Probabilistic Bit Generation in Mott Devices by Embedded Metal Nanoparticles

Considerable attention has been drawn to the use of volatile two-terminal devices relying on the Mott transition for the stochastic generation of probabilistic bits (p-bits) in emerging probabilistic computing. To improve randomness and endurance of bit streams provided by these devices, delicate control of the transient evolution of switchable domains is required to enhance stochastic p-bit generation. Herein, it is demonstrated that the randomness of p-bit streams generated via the consecutive pulse inputs of pump-probe protocols can be increased by the deliberate incorporation of metal nanoparticles (NPs), which influence the transient dynamics of the nanoscale metallic phase in VO₂ Mott switches. Among the vertically stacked Pt-NP-containing VO₂ threshold switches, those with higher Pt NP density show a considerably wider range of p-bit operation (e.g., up to ≈300% increase in ΔV_probe upon going from (Pt NP/VO₂)₀ to (Pt NP/VO₂)₁₁) and can therefore be operated under the conditions of high speed (400 kbit s^-1), low power consumption (14 nJ per bit), and high stability (>105 200 bits) for p-bit generation. Thus, the study presents a novel strategy that exploits nanoscale phase control to maximize the generation of nondeterministic information sources for energy-efficient probabilistic computing hardware.