Construction of a DNA Strand Displacement Memristor and Its Filter Circuit Characteristics

WANG Yanfeng; CHEN Guanzhou; SUN Ce; SUN Junwei

doi:10.11999/JEIT260283

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WANG Yanfeng, CHEN Guanzhou, SUN Ce, SUN Junwei. Construction of a DNA Strand Displacement Memristor and Its Filter Circuit Characteristics[J]. Journal of Electronics & Information Technology. doi: 10.11999/JEIT260283

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WANG Yanfeng, CHEN Guanzhou, SUN Ce, SUN Junwei. Construction of a DNA Strand Displacement Memristor and Its Filter Circuit Characteristics[J]. Journal of Electronics & Information Technology. doi: 10.11999/JEIT260283

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Construction of a DNA Strand Displacement Memristor and Its Filter Circuit Characteristics

doi: 10.11999/JEIT260283 cstr: 32379.14.JEIT260283

College of Electronic and Information Engineering, Zhengzhou University of Light Industry, Zhengzhou 450002, China

Funds: The National Natural Science Foundation of China (62272424, 62473342, 62276239), Scientific and Technological Innovation Team in University of Henan Province (24IRTSTHN023)

Received Date: 2026-03-16
Accepted Date: 2026-06-17
Rev Recd Date: 2026-06-15

Available Online: 2026-06-23

Abstract

Abstract

Objective Filter circuits are widely used in modern control and signal-processing systems for noise suppression and signal integrity enhancement. Conventional Resistor-Capacitor (RC) filters are widely applied, but their fixed parameters limit adaptability and miniaturization in emerging molecular and nanoscale computing platforms. To address these limitations, DNA Strand Displacement (DSD) technology is integrated with memristor theory to develop tunable multistable molecular filter circuits. This study aims to design and validate first- and second-order low-pass filter circuits based on the dynamic response and state-dependent behavior of a DSD-based memristor. The proposed filters are designed to improve frequency selectivity, parameter adaptability, and system stability compared with traditional filter architectures. This approach is intended for molecular signal processing, integrated biocircuits, and adaptive filtering systems that require compact size and reconfigurability. Methods The method consists of four stages. First, core DSD reaction modules, including sine, cosine, integration, addition, and multiplication modules, are designed to construct a programmable multistable memristor model. Second, square-wave and sinusoidal input signals are generated through DSD reactions to evaluate the memristor response under different frequencies and amplitudes. Third, the memristor is embedded into low-pass filter structures to construct first- and second-order DSD-based memristor filter circuits. Fourth, simulations are performed using Visual DSD for molecular dynamics analysis and MATLAB for circuit-level analysis. Circuit performance is evaluated using transfer functions, Nyquist plots, Bode diagrams, and time-domain comparisons with classical RC filters. This combined simulation strategy verifies both molecular feasibility and circuit functionality. Results and Discussions The DSD-based memristor exhibits multistable behavior and converges to six stable equilibrium points under different initial conditions (Fig. 8). Its hysteresis characteristics further confirm the state-dependent memory behavior of the designed molecular memristor (Fig. 7). The first-order DSD-based memristor filter circuit provides stable attenuation for square-wave and sinusoidal input signals. Its output amplitudes are consistently higher than those of the traditional RC filter across the tested frequencies (Table 3). The second-order DSD-based memristor filter circuit further reduces signal delay and improves stability, especially under high-frequency inputs (Table 4). Frequency-response analyses show that the cutoff frequency can be dynamically tuned by adjusting DSD reaction rates and initial concentrations (Figs. 9 and 11). Time-domain simulations further confirm the filtering performance of the first- and second-order circuits (Figs. 10 and 12). Reliability analysis indicates that lower initial copy numbers increase stochastic molecular noise, whereas higher initial copy numbers make the output distribution closer to the deterministic response and improve the probability of successful filtering. These results verify the feasibility of DSD-memristor integration for adaptive molecular filtering. Conclusions A DSD-based memristor with multistable characteristics and its corresponding first- and second-order low-pass filter circuits are designed and validated. Compared with traditional RC architectures, the proposed filters show improved output stability, parameter tunability, and frequency adaptability. By combining DSD technology with memristor theory, this study provides a reconfigurable molecular-scale filtering framework for signal-processing applications. The results provide a basis for future work on adaptive molecular circuits, intelligent filtering, and nanoelectronic system design. Further studies should focus on experimental validation, real-time tuning strategies, sequence optimization, anti-interference design, signal amplification, and circuit integration.
- DNA Strand Displacement(DSD),
- Memristor,
- Multistability,
- Low-pass filter circuit

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References(26)

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