Programmable photonics enabled by ferroionic two-dimensional materials

Artificial intelligence (AI) models are scaling rapidly, exposing fundamental limitations in conventional computing architectures, where the physical separation of memory and computation imposes substantial energy and latency overheads.

Optical neural networks offer a viable solution by enabling high-throughput, low-latency computation through the intrinsic parallelism of light.

However, the scalability of photonic computing is constrained by the lack of materials that can provide low-loss, energy-efficient, and nonvolatile control of optical phase.

Here, we discuss the emerging role of ferroionic two-dimensional materials as a platform for programmable photonics.

Unlike conventional ferroelectrics, where polarization arises from bounded lattice distortions, ferroionic systems enable field-driven ionic redistribution, providing access to a continuum of stable and reconfigurable states.

We outline how these material dynamics can be exploited to realize multi-level photonic states and nonvolatile phase control.

Furthermore, we highlight a back-end integration strategy that introduces multifunctionality, including tunable optical nonlinearities into pre-fabricated photonic circuits without compromising optical performance.

By bridging material-level dynamics with device- and system-level functionality, ferroionic materials provide a pathway toward reconfigurable, low-loss, and energy-efficient photonic computing architectures, opening new opportunities for neuromorphic and adaptive photonic systems.