Two qubits were able to “communicate” with each other for the first time thanks to the work of Australian researchers headed by a team from the University of New South Wales. This represents a significant advancement in building fully functional quantum computers.
For the first time, researchers have been able to regulate the interactions between two of these qubits, as described in Nature Communication. However, the team has had other successes as well. In addition, they produced the quietest quantum circuits and currently own the 30-second record for the longest stable qubit.
The goal of the research team is to construct a silicon quantum computer atom by precision atom positioning. They intend to produce a fully scaled quantum gadget using this method.
Senior author Michelle Simmons of Scientia Professor said in a statement, “The combined results from these three research papers confirm the extremely promising prospects for building multi-qubit systems using our atom qubits.”
“We can place our high-quality qubit wherever we want it on the chip, see what we’ve created, and then measure its behavior, which gives us a competitive advantage. To observe the interplay between the two wave functions, we can place another qubit close by. After that, we may begin to make copies of the gadgets we’ve made.
The group inserted three atoms of phosphorus into a silicon chip. One qubit was made of two atoms, and the other was made of the remaining atoms. The researchers were able to regulate the interactions between the nearby qubits by arranging electrodes inside the semiconductor. The scientists ensured that the atoms’ spins coincided, meaning that one would point up and the other down, and vice versa.
“These kinds of spin correlations are the building blocks for the entangled states required for a quantum computer to operate and perform intricate computations,” said co-author Dr. Matthew Broome, who is currently employed at the University of Copenhagen after formerly working at UNSW. “This is a major milestone for the technology.”
Utilizing a scanning probe, the group monitored the qubits’ positions and behaviors. One of the many fascinating discoveries is that, although it may not seem like a big difference, the qubit’s correlation happens at 16 nanometers rather than 20 nanometers as the theory predicted. As of right now, they are the only group in the world with a method for precisely determining the location of their qubits.
Information technology could undergo a revolution thanks to quantum computing. Through the application of quantum mechanics, scientists want to develop machines that will surpass current capabilities, including supercomputers, in terms of speed and power. Quantum computers could be utilized to model things like never before, from new technology to new medical applications.
