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STARC: Crafting Low-Power Mixed-Signal Neuromorphic Processors by Bridging SNN Frameworks and Analog Designs

Published: 09 September 2024 Publication History

Abstract

Developing low-power neuromorphic processors capable of inferring outcomes from SNN Frameworks presents significant challenges, largely due to the gap between frameworks and analog circuit-based SNNs. This paper analyzes the root of this gap as stemming from over/underflow issues and proposes mixed-signal neurons as a solution, further developing a neural core composed of these neurons. In the development of the neural core, we incorporate a design methodology for application-specific neural core optimization. We advance to develop a neural engine as an independent IP, ultimately introducing the snnTorch Architecture (STARC), an integrated mixed-signal neuromorphic processor architecture. The STARC processor, developed as a prototype, demonstrates operational correctness and exceptional low-power performance.

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cover image ACM Conferences
ISLPED '24: Proceedings of the 29th ACM/IEEE International Symposium on Low Power Electronics and Design
August 2024
384 pages
ISBN:9798400706882
DOI:10.1145/3665314
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Published: 09 September 2024

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Author Tags

  1. SNN
  2. neuromorphic processor
  3. snnTorch
  4. SoC
  5. mixed signal circuit

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