Thermodynamics of majority-logic decoding in information erasure

Abstract

We investigate the performance of majority-logic decoding in both reversible and finite-time information erasure processes performed on macroscopic bits that contain N microscopic binary units. While we show that for reversible erasure protocols single-unit transformations are more efficient than majority-logic decoding, the latter is found to offer several benefits for finite-time erasure processes: Both the minimal erasure duration for a given erasure and the minimal erasure error for a given erasure duration are reduced, if compared to a single unit. Remarkably, the majority-logic decoding is also more efficient in both the small-erasure error and fast-erasure region. These benefits are also preserved under the optimal erasure protocol that minimizes the dissipated heat. Our work therefore shows that majority-logic decoding can lift the precision-speed-efficiency trade-off in information erasure processes.