Memristive devices are an emerging new type of devices operating at the scale of a few or even single atoms. They are currently used as storage elements and are investigated for performing in-memory and neuromorphic computing. Amongst these devices, Ag/amorphous-SiOx/Pt memristors are among the most studied systems, with the electrically induced filament growth and dynamics being thoroughly investigated both theoretically and experimentally. In this paper, we report the observation of a novel feature in these devices: The appearance of new photoluminescent centers in SiOx upon memristive switching, and photon emission correlated with the conductance changes. This observation might pave the way towards an intrinsically memristive atomic scale light source with applications in neural networks, optical interconnects, and quantum communication.

Plasmonics is a powerful tool to miniaturize photonics. In this review, we introduce memristive plasmonics as a technique to shrink photonic devices to the atomic scale. We show atomic-scale plasmonic switches, detectors and emitters.

We demonstrate an electro-optical memristor capable of volatile and non-volatile operation. For the first time, we show control over the switching dynamics using a global optical signal, effectively mimicking neuromodulatory processes in the human brain.

We demonstrate a new concept in an electro-optical memristor where a global light stimulus induces non-volatile conductance changes. The optical signal acts as a third, independent stimulation channel, similar to neuromodulators in three-factor learning rules.

We integrate memristors in a silicon photonic/plasmonic platform and demonstrate modulators, photodetectors and electronic devices complemented with memory effect. The demonstrated memristors could be the key photonic building blocks in hybrid photonic-electronic neuromorphic chips.