Fig. 4: Proton-activated artificial synapses based on the Y7C peptide.
From: Proton-enabled activation of peptide materials for biological bimodal memory
(a) Schematics of the proton activation process in biological synapses (top) and artificial synapses (bottom). Presynaptic spikes and corresponding EPSCs are shown in red and green, respectively. In biological synapses, protons (blue) released from presynaptic neurons activate receptors at postsynaptic neurons to receive neurotransmitters (purple). (b) Postsynaptic currents of the artificial synapse under various RH conditions triggered by a pair of presynaptic voltage pulses (V = 1 v, ∆t = 1 s). PPF occurred at 90% RH (blue), while there was no presynaptic response at either 70% RH (magenta) or 60% RH (navy). (c) Proton-dependent plasticity of artificial synapses. The voltage pulse, RH pulse, and corresponding current output of the device are shown as red, blue, and green curves, respectively. Only when both voltage and RH inputs are activated does a notable learning process appear, and the synaptic response is suppressed drastically by reducing RH.
