Near-infrared light-driven logic adders based on a graphene/polydimethylsiloxane soft actuator

Photoactuated logic switches, which translate light signals into logic operations via mechanical deformation, represent an emerging area of interest for unconventional computing. This work presents a graphene/polydimethylsiloxane (graphene/PDMS)-based photoactuated logic system capable of performing complex optical logic operations. A light-responsive soft switch was designed based on the photothermal and mechanical response of the graphene/PDMS composite. This switch exhibited reversible deformation and maintained stable operation over thousands of cycles under 980 nm near-infrared (NIR) light. The switch was further integrated into seven fundamental, optically-controlled logic gates (AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR, XOR, XNOR) that operated under low-power NIR illumination. These gates were subsequently assembled into a 1-bit full adder, demonstrating the feasibility of constructing more complex, light-driven logic circuits from photoactuated materials.