Purdue University leads Microelectronics Commons Project on advancing Artificial Intelligence Hardware through the Silicon Crossroads Microelectronic Commons Hub

[West Lafayette, IN] — 19 September 2024 — Purdue University is proud to announce the award of a project to advance Artificial Intelligence (AI) Hardware through the Microelectronic Commons program in collaboration with the Silicon Crossroads Microelectronic Commons (SCMC) Hub. 

 

Purdue’s project titled CHEETA: CMOS+MRAM Hardware for Energy-EfficienT AI, will adopt a CMOS+X approach, specifically leveraging the unique capabilities of magnetic random access memory (MRAM) to design efficient in-memory computing hardware fabrics. This project will pursue lab-to-fab transition of pioneering research performed at Purdue for over a decade. The project brings together a strong team from academia, industry and national labs with diverse strengths in semiconductors and microelectronics, spanning materials, devices, circuits, architecture and systems. The Purdue-led team includes Kaushik Roy, Edward G. Tiedemann Jr. Distinguished Professor of ECE, Anand Raghunathan, Silicon Valley Chair Professor of ECE, and Sumeet Gupta, Elmore Family Associate Professor of ECE, with collaborating partners Everspin Technologies, Georgia Institute of Technology, Argonne National Laboratories, University of Michigan, and Northrop Grumman.

 

The CHEETA project aims to deliver impactful improvements in energy efficiency and sensor-to-decision latency compared to the current commercial state-of-the-art. These capabilities are expected to benefit defense applications by providing highly efficient AI hardware solutions with significant advancements in the "Size, Weight, and Power" (SWaP) metrics.

 

“This win underscores Purdue’s national leadership in microelectronics and semiconductors, from our world-leading research and industry partnership to our transformational investments in infrastructure and pioneering education and workforce development programs,” said Mung Chiang, President of Purdue University and Roscoe H. George Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. “Purdue is strongly committed to supporting the CHIPS Act and the ME Commons program, enhancing economic prosperity to the Silicon Heartland and national security of the US.”

 

“The CHEETA project represents a game-changing leap in microelectronics, blending CMOS and MRAM technologies to tackle the critical challenges of energy efficiency and latency in AI hardware," said Kaushik Roy. "Our collaboration in the CHEETA initiative underscores our commitment to advancing MRAM technology and integrating it with cutting-edge CMOS processes, paving the way for transformative improvements in AI system performance and efficiency."

 

The Silicon Crossroads Microelectronic Commons Hub (SCMC or The Hub), led by the Applied Research Institute, is an innovation ecosystem of diverse partners driven to accelerate expansion of America’s microelectronics base by leveraging strong collaborative practices that strategically support innovation, workforce development, and infrastructure needs to achieve domestic microelectronics excellence.  In this era of rapid technology advancements, the SCMC model attracts top talent, secures additional financial investments, and helps eliminate the R&D to production “valley of death.” For more information about the SCMC Hub, please visit www.siliconcrossroads.us.