Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41345135›Full record

ArticleNature communications2025

Probabilistic greedy algorithm solver using magnetic tunneling junctions for traveling salesman problem.

Ran Zhang, Xiaohan Li, Caihua Wan, Raik Hoffmann, Meike Hindenberg, Yingqian Xu, Shiqiang Liu, Dehao Kong, Shilong Xiong, Shikun He and 8 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

18 authors.

Ran ZhangBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5711-6475
Xiaohan LiBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Caihua WanBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. wancaihua@iphy.ac.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5456-1052
Raik HoffmannFraunhofer IPMS, Center Nanoelectronic Technologies, Dresden, Germany.
Meike HindenbergFraunhofer IPMS, Center Nanoelectronic Technologies, Dresden, Germany.
Yingqian XuBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Shiqiang LiuBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Dehao KongBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Shilong XiongBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Shikun HeZhejiang Hikstor Technology Co. Ltd, Hangzhou, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0351-2485
Alptekin VardarFraunhofer IPMS, Center Nanoelectronic Technologies, Dresden, Germany.
Qiang DaiZhejiang Hikstor Technology Co. Ltd, Hangzhou, China.
Junlu GongZhejiang Hikstor Technology Co. Ltd, Hangzhou, China.
Yihui SunZhejiang Hikstor Technology Co. Ltd, Hangzhou, China.
Zejie ZhengZhejiang Hikstor Technology Co. Ltd, Hangzhou, China.
Thomas KämpfeFraunhofer IPMS, Center Nanoelectronic Technologies, Dresden, Germany. thomas.kaempfe@ipms.fraunhofer.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4672-8676
Guoqiang YuBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7439-6920
Xiufeng HanBeijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. xfhan@iphy.ac.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8053-793X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Combinatorial optimization underpins applications in artificial intelligence, logistics, and network design, yet classical techniques such as greedy search and dynamic programming struggle to balance efficiency and solution quality at scale. We present a probabilistic framework that embeds true random number generators based on spin-transfer-torque magnetic tunnel junctions into a greedy solver. Intrinsic stochastic switching enables configurable random number distributions, which we use to inject controlled randomness via a temperature parameter that interpolates between deterministic and stochastic choices, balancing exploration and exploitation. Applied to the traveling salesman problem, the framework yields high-quality tours and outperforms simulated annealing and genetic algorithms in solution quality and convergence speed. In larger instances with up to 70 cities, it maintains its advantage, reaching near-optimal solutions with fewer iterations and reduced computational cost. These results show that hardware true randomness with tunable statistics can improve heuristic search and motivate integrated, energy-efficient probabilistic hardware for scalable optimization.

Identifiers

PMID41345135
PMCPMC12780240

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.