Austrian researchers are using high-precision control of the quantum entanglement phenomena to push the boundaries of quantum computing. One of the pioneers of quantum computing and one of the most active researchers in this field is experimental physicist Rainer Blatt of the University of Innsbruck (UoI) in Austria.
Creating controlled qubits to enable the exploitation of quantum characteristics for information encoding and processing is a crucial step toward unlocking the potential of quantum computing. A group under the direction of Rainer Blatt was able to establish a record in 2011 when they created a quantum register with 14 programmable ultracold ions (qubits).
The Blatt team then went one step further and shattered their own record by building a multi-particle entanglement system composed of twenty addressable and individually programmable qubits, as we revealed last month. Another development has brought quantum entanglement one step closer to real-world applications, thanks to the work of Prof. Blatt and his colleagues at the Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Information.
Blatt’s group has advanced further after learning to create and control an entangled system and individually address particles within it. This time, they managed to regulate the pace at which a single photon in an entangled separated pair emits light. The group examined two situations in which the particles are either entangled or not entangled while working with barium atoms, comparing the photon interference produced in each circumstance.
A RESEARCH TEAM MEMBER EXPLAINING, GABRIEL ARANEDA, SAID: “THE MEASUREMENTS SHOWED THAT THESE ARE QUALITATIVELY DIFFERENT.”
In actuality, the amount of entanglement in the atoms is directly correlated with the measured difference of the interference fringes. We can fully optically characterize the entanglement in this way.
Quantum interference, the study and manipulation of entangled emitters’ light emissions, could lead to the creation of particular quantum devices with “previously unknown precision.”
“WE TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS SENSITIVITY AND MEASURE MAGNETIC FIELD GRADENTS USING THE OBSERVED INTERFERENCE SIGNAL.”
The development of ultra-sensitive optical grademeters could be facilitated by this technique. Researchers stated that these measurements might precisely compare field strengths at different locations, such as the earth’s magnetic or gravitational fields because the measured effect is not dependent on the proximity of the atoms.