Artificial Stimuli-Response System Capable of Conscious Response

Stimulus-response system and conscious response enable humans to respond effectively to environmental changes and external stimuli. Inspired by human conscious response, this paper presents an artificial stimulus-response system capable of conscious response. The system is composed of an artificial visual receptor, artificial synapse, artificial neuron circuit, and an actuator. Vertically stacked graphene/semiconductor heterostructure is employed as a base layer for the artificial visual receptor and artificial synapse to allow high integration density. The artificial visual receptor with InP quantum dot layer generates the electrical pulse under light illumination. The artificial synapse with retentive electric double layer processes the electrical pulse signals to strengthen synaptic connections. The artificial neuron circuit is designed with CMOS circuit which integrates synaptic output signal to activate the actuator. By incorporating these artificial nervous components, a series of conscious response process is demonstrated which drastically reduces response time as a result of learning from repeated stimuli. The demonstrated artificial stimulus-response system offers a promising research field providing an alternative to patients with neurological disorders.