TREND
Two recent announcements remind us that Quantum Computers are coming
The arrival of the first Quantum Computers usable by companies is getting closer. Two pieces of news announced at the end of February confirm it.
Last week was marked by two major announcements concerning the Quantum Computing sector.
Google widely publicised in media around the world a paper, written by researchers at Google Quantum AI and accepted by the prestigious journal Nature, on a method for correcting qubit errors based on the technique known as “surface code” and on the use of a hybrid architecture of physical and virtual qubits.
This method represents an important step forward in the search for solutions to improve the error-correction capability of today’s first-generation Quantum Computers, paving the way for the actual use of this technology in new applications in fields such as the simulation of chemical reactions, quantum cryptography and machine learning.
The Google news actually refers to research carried out in 2022 and published in April; nonetheless, it is significant exactly when the specialist company Quantinum announced an important milestone, reaching a quantum volume of 32,768 for its H1-1 processors, based on “trapped ion” technology (trapped ion).
This is a significant improvement over the previous record of 8,192 set by the same company only a few months earlier, and indicates significant progress in the search for effective solutions to build reliable, high-performance quantum computers.
Quantum Computing is a type of information processing based on the principles of quantum mechanics, which allows information to be processed and problems otherwise too complex for traditional computers — based on a different model of computing — to be solved.
A quantum computer uses an information-processing model based on qubits, that is quantum bits, which can represent a linear combination of multiple quantum states instead of just 0 or 1 like classical bits. Thanks to this property, quantum computers can process huge amounts of information simultaneously and in parallel, increasing the speed at which problems are processed and solved.
Building a quantum computer is an extremely complex technological and scientific challenge, requiring deep knowledge of quantum mechanics and the ability to manipulate and control the systems that make up the qubits.
Some specific difficulties make the construction of a quantum computer a very hard endeavour.
For example, quantum coherence is a fundamental aspect of qubits, i.e. their ability to maintain the quantum state for a long enough period of time to carry out complex computations. Interaction with the surrounding environment — such as temperature or vibrations — can in fact compromise the quantum coherence of qubits and cause errors in the computations.
For this reason, when assessing the performance of a quantum computer it is important to consider not only the number of qubits, but also the overall ability of the system to remain coherent for a time long enough to allow the execution of complex algorithms.
IBM in 2019 defined a specific metric that captures exactly this aspect: the quantum volume.
The quantum volume is measured through a standardised, codified procedure and its value represents the ability to run complex algorithms reliably. Higher quantum volume values correspond to better performance.
Quantum information processing requires the use of specific algorithms, which must be designed to exploit the peculiarities of qubits and obtain efficient results. Designing these algorithms is not simple and requires a deep knowledge of quantum mechanics and information processing.
In parallel with research and development in quantum hardware, an intense activity of quantum software and platform development is under way.
The two pieces of news publicised last week remind us that the roadmaps of the many companies committed on this front are proceeding on schedule, and the first market impacts are expected by 2025.
Among the most affected sectors will be Artificial Intelligence, which is already producing impressive results leveraging classical computing.
The development of quantum machine learning is set to produce results that are unimaginable today.
For anyone interested in exploring the topic, we recommend the first free lesson of our Quantum Computing Course — the first complete course in Italian, with exercises on real quantum computers.