{"id":35809,"date":"2023-01-17T11:22:50","date_gmt":"2023-01-17T12:22:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/?p=35809"},"modified":"2023-01-17T12:36:38","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T12:36:38","slug":"accidental-breakthrough-by-australian-scientists-could-be-key-to-large-scale-quantum-computers-being-cheaper-and-more-usable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/2023\/01\/17\/accidental-breakthrough-by-australian-scientists-could-be-key-to-large-scale-quantum-computers-being-cheaper-and-more-usable\/","title":{"rendered":"Accidental breakthrough by Australian scientists could be key to large scale quantum computers being cheaper and more usable"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Illustration showing how multiple qubits might be controlled using the new ‘intrinsic spin-orbit EDSR’ process. Credit: Tony Melov.<\/div>\n
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Quantum computers promise to revolutionise computing, but the technology is not without its problems.<\/p>\n

Research coming out of Australia\u2019s University of New South Wales (UNSW) might take us a step closer to tackling one of the major problems: how to control single quantum bits in a series of them.<\/p>\n

Most quantum computers today run on a very small number of quantum bits (or qubits). Late last year, IBM announced<\/a> that they had a quantum computer, IBM Osprey, with 433 qubits. This more than tripled the previous largest quantum processor which had 127 qubits, IBM Eagle.<\/p>\n

As significant as these developments are, if we\u2019re speaking honestly, a quantum computer with more than three or four qubits is a nightmare to run. The very same quantum effects which promise to make quantum computers so powerful, are also making it very difficult to build.<\/p>\n

Quantum effects mean controlling individual qubits without interfering with the others is extremely difficult. Most quantum computer architectures are bulky and complicated in engineers\u2019 attempts to either dampen the quantum interference, or compensate for it.<\/p>\n

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Read more: ChatGPT is making waves, but what do AI chat tools mean for the future of writing?<\/a><\/em><\/h4>\n
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Research at UNSW involving the quantum computing start-up Diraq<\/a> reveals a new way of precisely controlling single electrons within a series of qubits (sometimes referred to as \u201cquantum dots\u201d in certain architectures). The discovery is published<\/a> in Nature Nanotechnology<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a completely new effect we\u2019d never seen before, which we didn\u2019t quite understand at first,\u201d says lead author Dr Will Gilbert, an engineer at Diraq. \u201cBut it quickly became clear that this was a powerful new way of controlling spins in a quantum dot. And that was super exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team came across a strange effect while experimenting with the geometrical arrangement of devices nanometres in size.<\/p>\n

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Get an update of science stories delivered straight to your inbox.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI was trying to really accurately operate a two-qubit gate, iterating through a lot of different devices, slightly different geometries, different materials stacks, and different control techniques,\u201d explains co-author and Diraq engineer Dr Tuomo Tanttu. \u201cThen this strange peak popped up. It looked like the rate of rotation for one of the qubits was speeding up, which I\u2019d never seen in four years of running these experiments.\u201d<\/p>\n

What Tanttu and the team had discovered completely by accident was a new way of manipulating the quantum state of a single qubit using electrical fields. Previously, they had been attempting single qubit control using magnetic fields.<\/p>\n

\u201cNormally, we design our microwave antennas to deliver purely magnetic fields,\u201d Dr Tanttu remarks. \u201cBut this particular antenna design generated more of an electric field than we wanted \u2013 but that turned out to be lucky, because we discovered a new effect we can use to manipulate qubits. That\u2019s serendipity for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having made the discovery in 2020, Diraq engineers have since been refining their technique which they hope will eventually lead to the building of single chips with billions of qubits on them.<\/p>\n

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Read more: Nobel Physics Prize explainer: Shedding light on entangled photons and their applications in quantum technologies<\/a><\/em><\/h4>\n
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\u201cThis is a new way to manipulate qubits, and it\u2019s less bulky to build \u2013 you don\u2019t need to fabricate cobalt micro-magnets or an antenna right next to the qubits to generate the control effect,\u201d adds Gilbert. \u201cIt removes the requirement of placing extra structures around each gate. So, there\u2019s less clutter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a gem of new mechanism, which just adds to the trove of proprietary technology we\u2019ve developed over the past 20 years of research,\u201d says Diraq founder and CEO Professor Andrew Dzurak. \u201cIt builds on our work to make quantum computing in silicon a reality, based on essentially the same semiconductor component technology as existing computer chips, rather than relying on exotic materials. Since it is based on the same CMOS technology as today\u2019s computer industry, our approach will make it easier and faster to scale up for commercial production and achieve our goal of fabricating billions of qubits on a single chip.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe often think of landing on the Moon as humanity\u2019s greatest technological marvel,\u201d says Dzurak. \u201cBut the truth is, today\u2019s CMOS chips \u2013 with billions of operating devices integrated together to work like a symphony, and that you carry in your pocket \u2013 that\u2019s an astounding technical achievement, and one that\u2019s revolutionised modern life. Quantum computing will be equally astonishing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Evrim Yazgin<\/h3>\n

Evrim Yazgin has a Bachelor of Science majoring in mathematical physics and a Master of Science in physics, both from the University of Melbourne.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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Read science facts, not fiction…<\/h3>\n

There\u2019s never been a more important time to explain the facts, cherish evidence-based knowledge and to showcase the latest scientific, technological and engineering breakthroughs. Cosmos is published by The Royal Institution of Australia, a charity dedicated to connecting people with the world of science. Financial contributions, however big or small, help us provide access to trusted science information at a time when the world needs it most. Please support us by making a donation or purchasing a subscription today.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Illustration showing how multiple qubits might be controlled using the new ‘intrinsic spin-orbit EDSR’ process.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35811,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35809"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35809"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35809\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35814,"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35809\/revisions\/35814"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35809"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peymantaeidi.net\/stem-cell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}