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Metastable dynamical computing with energy landscapes: A primer
Christian Z Pratt1, Kyle J Ray1, James P Crutchfield1
1Complexity Sciences Center and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, California 95616, USA.
Chaos (Woodbury, N.Y.)
|June 8, 2026
Summary
Dynamical computing uses energy landscapes to process information, offering a more efficient alternative to traditional CMOS technology. This approach enables the design of universal logic gates with improved thermodynamic performance.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Computer Science
- Thermodynamics
Background:
- Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) technologies power modern devices but have high energy costs.
- There is a growing need for energy-efficient information processing designs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore dynamical computing as an energy-efficient information processing paradigm.
- To demonstrate the computational capabilities and thermodynamic performance of dynamical computing.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing potential energy landscapes with metastable minima to represent memory states.
- Applying bifurcation theory to analyze computational protocols by tracking fixed points.
- Implementing 1-bit and 2-bit computations using double-well and quadruple-well potentials.
Main Results:
- Information processing is achieved by dynamically manipulating memory states within the energy landscape.
- Demonstrated successful 1-bit and 2-bit computations.
- Illustrated the potential for designing universal logic gates.
Conclusions:
- Dynamical computing offers a promising framework for energy-efficient information processing.
- The paradigm provides a natural description of thermodynamic transformations and resource requirements.
- Further investigation into out-of-equilibrium thermodynamic performance is warranted.
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