Field-Programmable Analog Array Implementation of Neuromorphic Silicon Neurons with Fractional Dynamics

Abstract

Silicon neurons are bioinspired circuits with the capability to reproduce the modulation through pulse-frequency observed in real neurons. They are of particular interest in closed-loop schemes to encode the control signal into pulses. This paper proposes the analog realization of neuromorphic silicon neurons with fractional dynamics. In particular, the fractional-order (FO) operator is introduced into classical neurons with the intention of reproducing the adaptation that has been observed experimentally in real neurons, which is the variation in the firing frequency even when considering a constant or periodic incoming stimulus. For validation purposes, simulations using a field-programmable analog array (FPAA) are performed to verify the behavior of the circuits.

Keywords

• neuromorphic
• silicon neurons
• pulse-frequency modulation
• fractional operator
• field-programmable analog array