Hitachi, Ltd.

Inter-university Research Institute Corporation Research Organization of Information and Systems

Chihiro Yoshimura

Masanao Yamaoka

Masato Hayashi

Kenichi Osada

Tomonori Sekiguchi

Takeshi Kato

Akihito Akai

Tatsuya Tomaru

Goichi Ono

Takuya Okuyama

Takanori Maehara

Takuya Ohwa

Ken-ichi Kawarabayashi

Takuro Fukunaga

Taro Takaguchi

An information processing apparatus manufactured at low cost and with ease and that is capable of making a search for a ground state of an arbitrary Ising model. An information processing unit containing a plurality of semiconductor chips, each retains a value of one spin or values of a plurality of spins and simulates interactions among the spins, inter-chip wiring between the necessary semiconductor chips, and a control unit that cause each semiconductor chip to perform interaction computation. The control unit converts data of a problem into data of a lattice-shaped Ising model, which is possibly expressed by the plurality of semiconductor chips, without causing a spin arrangement, in a ground state of an Ising model for the problem, to be changed. The data of the lattice-shaped Ising model is divided for allocation to the plurality of semiconductor chips, and causes each semiconductor chip to perform the interaction computation.

Information processing device and control method therefor

An aspect of the present invention for solving the above problem is a system including a first computer, a control module controlled by the first computer, and a second computer configured to be associated with the control module. The second computer includes a plurality of units, and each of the plurality of units includes a first memory that stores a value indicating a state of a node, a second memory that stores a coefficient, and an arithmetic circuit. The arithmetic circuit performs an arithmetic process of determining a value indicating a state of a node of its own unit, based on a value indicating a state of a node of a different unit and the coefficient of its own unit, and storing the determined value in the first memory. The control module supplies a control signal for controlling the arithmetic process to the second computer.

Information processing acceleration control system

A semiconductor device in which a ground state of an Ising model is realized, includes a spin array in which a spin unit is formed, the spin unit including a memory cell storing a value of one spin in an Ising model, a memory cell storing an interaction coefficient from an adjacent spin interacting with the spin, a memory cell storing an external magnetic field coefficient of the spin, and a circuit deciding a next state of the spin by binary majority decision logic based on a product of the value of each of the adjacent spins and the corresponding interaction coefficient, and the external magnetic field coefficient. The spin array is formed by having a plurality of the spin units, each having each spin allocated thereto, arranged and connected on a two-dimensional plane on a semiconductor substrate in the state where a topology of the Ising model is maintained.

Semiconductor device and information processing device using the topology of an ising model

An information processing unit and information processing method capable of performing a ground-state search of an Ising model having coefficients of arbitrary values regardless of restrictions on hardware or software is suggested. When a ground state of an original problem, which is an Ising model, or an approximate solution of that ground state is calculated as a solution of the original problem, one or more sub-problems which are Ising models are generated from the original problem and the information processing unit searches the ground state of each generated sub-problem and generates a solution of the original problem based on a solution of each sub-problem obtained from the search; and when types of coefficient values of an Ising model whose ground state can be searched are limited, sub-problems which are Ising models composed of the types of limited values of coefficients are generated.

Information processing apparatus and information processing method

A semiconductor integrated circuit apparatusis used for obtaining an optimum solution using an Ising model, and the semiconductor integrated circuit apparatusincludes plural spin cellsthat are connected with each other. Here, each spin cellincludes: a memory cell(N) for memorizing a spin value; a computing circuitfor computing interactions among the plural spin cells that are connected with each other; a memory circuitfor holding at least one-bit data; and an inversion logic circuit LG capable of modifying a computed result obtained by the computing circuit in accordance with data held by the memory circuit. The computed result modified by a modification circuit in accordance with the data held by the memory circuit is memorized in the memory cell(N) included in each spin cell

Semiconductor integrated circuit apparatus

A semiconductor device is provided with a plurality of semiconductor chips, each of which simulates interactions between nodes of an interaction model, and an inter-chip wire, wherein the plurality of semiconductor chips are used to simulate interactions between nodes of a single interaction model; each semiconductor chip includes a connection unit that sends and receives some of the values indicating the state of the nodes, which are retained by a necessary element unit, via inter-chip wire to and from another semiconductor chip or sends and receives the values indicating state of the nodes, which are retained by the necessary element unit to and from the other semiconductor chip while sharing the inter-chip wire by means of time sharing.

Semiconductor device

A spin unit provided with a memory cell that stores a value of one spin of an Ising model, a memory cell that stores an interaction coefficient from an adjacent spin which interacts with the corresponding spin, a memory cell that stores an external magnetic field coefficient of the one spin and circuits that determine the next state of the one spin on the basis of a product of a value of each adjacent spin and the corresponding interaction coefficient and the external magnetic field coefficient is configured, the semiconductor device is provided with a spin array where the plural spin units are arranged and connected on a two-dimensional plane on a semiconductor substrate, a random number generator and a bit regulator, the bit regulator operates output of the random number generator and supplies a random bit to all spin units in the spin array via one wire.

Semiconductor device and information processing system

In a semiconductor device in which components to be a basic configuration unit are arranged in an array shape for calculating an interaction model, a technique capable of changing a topology between the components is provided. A semiconductor device includes a plurality of units each of which includes a first memory cell for storing a value indicating a state of one node of an interaction model, a second memory cell for storing an interaction coefficient indicating an interaction from a node connected to the one node, and a calculation circuit for determining a value indicating a next state of the one node based on a value indicating a state of the connected node and on the interaction coefficient. In addition, the semiconductor device includes a plurality of switches for connecting or disconnecting the plurality of units to/from each other.

Semiconductor device and information processing device

A highly-convenient information processing system capable of obtaining a solution of a problem under conditions desired by a user and a management apparatus capable of enhancing the convenience of the information processing system are suggested. An information processing system includes: a host unit equipped with one or more semiconductor chips that execute a ground-state search of an Ising model; and an operation unit that provides a user interface for a user to designate a problem; and a management unit that converts the problem designated by the user by using the user interface into the Ising model and controls the host unit to have the semiconductor chip perform the ground-state search of the converted Ising model; wherein the user can designate a condition for solving the problem by using the user interface; wherein the management unit generates an operating condition of the semiconductor chip according to the condition designated by the user and reports the generated operating condition and the Ising model of the problem designated by the user to the host unit; and wherein the host unit controls the semiconductor chip in accordance with the operating condition reported from the management unit.

Information processing system and management apparatus

A semiconductor device includes a spin array in which a plurality of memory cells are disposed in a matrix configuration, a group of a predetermined number of memory cells is collected in units of spin units, and a plurality of the spin units are disposed with an adjacency; a word line provided in correspondence with rows of the memory cells; a bit line pair provided in correspondence with columns of the memory cells; a multiword decoder configured to multiplex a word address according to an input of a multiplicity specify signal to a word line and simultaneously activate a plurality of word lines; and a bit line driver configured to subject a plurality of memory cells, of the memory cells connected to bit line pairs and arrayed in a column direction, activated by the plurality of the word lines to a write operation or a read operation.

Semiconductor device for calculating an interaction model

It is an object of the present invention to provide a device which can be easily manufactured and obtain a ground state of an arbitrary Ising model. A semiconductor device includes a first memory cell and a second memory cell that interacts with the first memory cell, in which storage content of the first memory cell and the second memory cell is stochastically inverted. The storage content is stochastically inverted by dropping threshold voltages of the first memory cell and the second memory cell. The threshold voltages of the first and second memory cells are dropping by controlling substrate biases, power voltages, or trip points of the first and second memory cells.

Semiconductor device capable of attaining ground state in an ising model

A semiconductor device includes a plurality of spin units individually including a memory cell configured to store values of spins in an Ising model, a memory cell configured to store an interaction coefficient from an adjacent spin that exerts an interaction on the spin, a memory cell configured to store an external magnetic field coefficient of the spin, and an interaction circuit configured to determine a subsequent state of the spin. The spin units individually include a random number generator configured to supply the random number to the plurality of the spin units and generate two-valued simulated coefficients of two values or simulated coefficients of three values in performing an interaction to determine a subsequent state of a spin of the spin units from a value of a spin from an adjacent spin unit, an interaction coefficient, and an external magnetic field coefficient.

A semiconductor device capable of easily and properly detecting a defective element unit(s) and a quality management method for the semiconductor device are suggested. A semiconducting device simulating interactions between nodes in an interaction model is equipped with a quality management unit for managing the quality of each element unit provided corresponding to each node, wherein the quality management unit executes a specified quality test of each element unit, compares test results of the quality test with pre-given results to be obtained from the quality test, and detects a defective memory cell(s) and a defective element unit(s) based on the comparison results.

Semiconductor device and its quality management method

A semiconductor device has a plurality of units, each of which includes a first memory cell that stores a value indicating a state of one node of an interaction model, a second memory cell that stores an interaction coefficient indicating an interaction from a node connected to the one node, and a third memory cell that stores a bias coefficient of the one node. Furthermore, the semiconductor device has a computing circuit that determines a value indicating a next state of the one node based on a value indicating a state of the connected node, the interaction coefficient and the bias coefficient. Also, each of the second memory cell and the third memory cell in the plurality of units includes multi-valued memory cells.

A semiconductor device in which components each serving as a basic constitutional unit are arranged in order to find a solution of an interaction model. The semiconductor device includes multiple units each of which has: a first memory cell for scoring a value indicating a state of one node of the interaction model; a second memory cell for storing an interaction coefficient indicating an interaction from another node connected to the one node; a third memory cell for storing a flag for fixing a value of the first memory cell; a first arithmetic circuit that decides a next state of the one node based on a value indicating a state of the other node and the interaction coefficient; and a second arithmetic circuit that decides whether or not to record a value indicating the next state in the first memory cell according to a value of the flag.

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Tokyo, Japan

Chihiro Yoshimura