Scientists create fourth electronic element: the “memristor”

First, let’s get back into our schoolbooks. Current electronics are based on three main cornerstone components: The transistor, the capacitor and the inductor.

Researchers at HP Labs have now built the first working prototypes of an important new electronic component that may lead to instant-on PCs as well as analog computers that process information the way the human brain does.

The new component is called a “memristor“, or memory resistor. The circuit element had only been described in theory by Leon Chua back in 1971, nobody managed to actually create one.