Finnish researchers have advanced quantum computing by achieving a record coherence time for transmon qubits.
Category: quantum physics
An approach to realize heralded photon storage in a Rydberg superatom
Quantum technologies, systems that operate leveraging quantum mechanical effects, have the potential to outperform classical technologies in some specific tasks. Over the past decades, some researchers have also been trying to realize quantum networks, systems comprised of multiple connected quantum devices.
So far, photons have been the most widely used particles for carrying quantum information across different devices in quantum networks. The main reasons for this are that photons can travel at remarkable speeds, while weakly interacting with their surrounding environment, which helps to preserve the quantum states they are carrying.
To successfully employ photons in quantum networks, however, physicists and engineers need to be able to confirm that they are stored successfully without destroying them.
Physicists reveal how a lone spinon emerges in quantum magnetic models
Researchers from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw and the University of British Columbia have described how a so-called lone spinon—an exotic quantum excitation that is a single unpaired spin—can arise in magnetic models. The discovery deepens our understanding of the nature of magnetism and could have implications for the development of future technologies such as quantum computers and new magnetic materials. The work is published in Physical Review Letters.
Magnetism has been known to humanity since ancient times, when naturally magnetized magnetite was discovered. This finding soon found highly practical applications. The first compasses were created in the 11th century in China, and began to be used for navigation.
Today, magnets play an important role in many technologies that surround us, from computer memory and speakers to electric motors and medical diagnostics. Interestingly, alongside photography, magnets have also become a common souvenir of travel, occupying a prominent place in our homes.
Cracking the quantum code: Light and glass are set to transform computing
European researchers are developing quantum computers using light and glass, in a collaboration that promises breakthroughs in computing power, battery technology and scientific discovery.
Giulia Acconcia grew up in the picturesque, historic town of Spoleto, nestled in the foothills of Italy’s Apennine Mountains. Already in secondary school, she became fascinated with modern technology—a passion that would shape her future.
Her love of electronics led her to the Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy, where she now finds herself at the forefront of quantum computing research.
Light and heavy electrons cooperate in magic-angle superconductors
Electrons play many roles in solid materials. When they are weakly bound and able to travel—i.e., mobile—they can enable electrical conduction. When they are bound, or “heavy,” they can act as insulators. However, in certain solid materials, this behavior can be markedly different, raising questions about how these different types of electrons interact.
In a study just published in Nature Physics, researchers working with Professor of Physics and Applied Physics Amir Yacoby at Harvard examined the interplay between both types of electrons in this material, shedding new light on how they may help form novel quantum states.
“Before our work, people could only ask ‘What is the overall ground state?’” said Andrew T. Pierce, one of the paper’s lead authors. Pierce, currently a fellow at Cornell University, was a graduate student in Yacoby’s lab when they began to study this question. What wasn’t clear was the true nature of these different states and how the separate light and heavy electrons joined forces to form them.
Quantum enhancement discovery could improve medical technologies
Technologies such as biomedical imaging and spectroscopy could be enhanced by a discovery in research that involved several institutions, including the University of Glasgow. Scientists have found that two-photon processes, which have applications in the study of Alzheimer’s disease and other nervous system disorders, can be strengthened by quantum light at far higher levels than previously thought possible.
The processes normally require high-intensity light but this can cause samples to be damaged or bleached.
It was suggested many years ago—and has since been demonstrated—that entangled photon pairs could overcome this limitation. However, it has been widely believed that this quantum enhancement only survives for very faint light, raising doubts about the usefulness of the approach.
Mining the Moon begins: US firm’s robot to extract rare helium-3 and launch payloads back to Earth for futuristic energy use
In a bold move that could transform the future of clean energy and quantum computing, a Seattle-based startup, Interlune, is taking the first steps toward mining the Moon for a rare isotope called helium-3. This new venture has the potential to challenge the boundaries of technology, as well as the frameworks for space exploration and international resource management.
The high-tech wizardry of integrated photonics
Inspired by the “Harry Potter” stories and the Disney Channel show “Wizards of Waverly Place,” 7-year-old Sabrina Corsetti emphatically declared to her parents one afternoon that she was, in fact, a wizard.
“My dad turned to me and said that, if I really wanted to be a wizard, then I should become a physicist. Physicists are the real wizards of the world,” she recalls.
That conversation stuck with Corsetti throughout her childhood, all the way up to her decision to double-major in physics and math in college, which set her on a path to MIT, where she is now a graduate student in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
While her work may not involve incantations or magic wands, Corsetti’s research centers on an area that often produces astonishing results: integrated photonics. A relatively young field, integrated photonics involves building computer chips that route light instead of electricity, enabling compact and scalable solutions for applications ranging from communications to sensing.
MIT graduate student Sabrina Corsetti is exploring the cutting edge of integrated photonics, which involves building computer chips that route light instead of electricity. Her projects have included a chip-sized 3D printer and miniaturized optical systems for quantum computing.