Programmable wave-based analog computing machine: a metastructure that designs metastructures

TL;DR

This paper introduces a reconfigurable metastructure capable of performing complex mathematical computations using electromagnetic waves, enabling ultrafast, parallelized analog processing for linear algebra and optimization tasks.

Contribution

It presents the first experimental demonstration of a reconfigurable wave-based analog computing machine that can perform stationary and non-stationary mathematical algorithms.

Findings

Successfully demonstrated matrix inversion using the metastructure.

Implemented root finding with Newton's method.

Applied inverse design via Lagrange multipliers.

Abstract

The ability to perform mathematical computations using metastructures is an emergent paradigm that carries the potential of wave-based analog computing to the realm of near-speed-of-light, low-loss, compact devices. We theoretically introduce and experimentally verify the concept of a reconfigurable metastructure that performs analog complex mathematical computations using electromagnetic waves. Reconfigurable, RF-based components endow our device with the ability to perform stationary and non-stationary iterative algorithms. After demonstrating matrix inversion (stationary problem), we use the machine to tackle two major non-stationary problems: root finding with Newton's method and inverse design (constrained optimization) via the Lagrange multiplier method. The platform enables possible avenues for wave-based, analog computations for general linear algebraic problems and beyond in compact, ultrafast, and parallelized ways.