Neuron-Inspired Silicon Technology: 60 Layers for Enhanced Interconnectivity

[PhilKravitz]

Human neurons have fanouts of like 5000. Transistors in CPU have fanouts of like 3 with 10 as a large number.

Humans have like 60 wiring layers in the six layers of neurons of the neocortex. Chips have like 8. When will we see silicon technology with 60 layers and interconnectivity like neurons?

 

[phyzguy]

I think there are two big problems:

(1) Chips are still built primarily with 2-dimensional technology. There are some early techniques to scale up to 3D, but nobody really sees how to get to a true 3D network like in your brain. The only feasible way to build such a thing may ultimately be to "grow" it, assembling it from basic building blocks that self-assemble in some way.

(2) If you did wire up a computer in 3D, with the power densities we run today, the whole thing would quickly melt, since there is no way to conduct the power dissipated in the inside out quickly enough. We would need to dramatically decrease the power density to connect up as many devices in as small a volume as your brain.