DESIGN OF OPTICALLY COUPLED THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONTENT ADDRESSABLE MEMORY

An optically coupled three-dimensional content addressable memory is newly proposed and an example of parallel data processing systems with this memory is described. The new memory employs the optically coupling flip-flop with LEDs and photoconductors for optical data transfer. The optically coupling flip-flop is optimized in design for achieving a high data transfer rate. Simultaneous data inspection through several memory layers can be implemented by using the optically coupled three-dimensional content addressable memory.