US 11,936,434 B2
Systems and methods for analog computing using a linear photonic processor
Darius Bunandar, Boston, MA (US); Nicholas C. Harris, Boston, MA (US); Michael Gould, La Honda, CA (US); Carl Ramey, Westborough, MA (US); and Tomo Lazovich, Cambridge, MA (US)
Assigned to Lightmatter, Inc., Boston, MA (US)
Filed by Lightmatter, Inc., Boston, MA (US)
Filed on Apr. 26, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/139,431.
Application 18/139,431 is a continuation of application No. 17/840,515, filed on Jun. 14, 2022, granted, now 11,671,182.
Application 17/840,515 is a continuation of application No. 16/940,900, filed on Jul. 28, 2020, granted, now 11,398,871, issued on Jul. 26, 2022.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/939,480, filed on Nov. 22, 2019.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/879,936, filed on Jul. 29, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2023/0353252 A1, Nov. 2, 2023
Int. Cl. H04B 10/80 (2013.01); G06F 1/28 (2006.01); H03K 19/21 (2006.01)
CPC H04B 10/801 (2013.01) [G06F 1/28 (2013.01); H03K 19/21 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An optical processor for performing a matrix-vector multiplication operation between an input vector and a matrix, the optical processor comprising:
a first beam splitter configured to split an input optical signal received from a light source into a plurality of input optical signals;
a first modulator configured to output a first optical signal by encoding a vector element of the input vector in an input optical signal received from the first beam splitter;
second beam splitters optically coupled to outputs of the first modulator and configured to split the first optical signal into a plurality of first optical signals;
second modulators configured to output second optical signals, wherein:
one modulator of the second modulators is optically coupled to an output of one of the second beam splitters, and
the one modulator is configured to generate one of the second optical signals by encoding, in a received first optical signal of the plurality, a value representing a multiplication of a matrix element of the matrix with the vector element encoded in the first optical signal;
optical detectors, each optically coupled to an output of a modulator of the second modulators and configured to generate a photocurrent using a received one of the second optical signals; and
a summing circuit coupled to two or more optical detectors of the optical detectors, the summing circuit being configured to generate an electrical signal representing a multiplication of the input vector and a row of the matrix.