Quantum computing

12 Sep 23

Electric Cooling Could Shrink Quantum Computers

Computer & Information Technology

Quantum computers hold the promise of tackling problems that no regular computer is capable of solving. However, a key limitation they face is that most types require bulky, energy-hungry refrigerators to keep qubits at near absolute-zero temperatures. Now researchers say new devices that operate a bit like vacuum tubes could…

06 Aug 23

EU Late to the Quantum Party, Report Warns

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation

Companies and governments need to act quickly to develop a comprehensive strategy for quantum readiness, says a new report by the European Policy Center, a think tank for European Union affairs. Given the current pace of quantum computing research, a quantum computer capable of breaking modern cryptography is estimated to…

02 Aug 23

New Form of Silicon Targets Quantum Computing

Mechanical, Production & Manufacturing

Some of the most promising quantum computers have to date involved exotic materials and systems—including superconducting materials cooled to near-absolute zero and floating ions and atoms held in electric fields and laser traps. Yet familiar old silicon would be decidedly more scalable and convenient if only there were reliable ways…

14 Jun 23

Quantum Repeaters for a Global Quantum Internet

Electrical, Electronics & Instrumentation

The physics that makes quantum computers tick is very sensitive to disturbances. Currently this means that these computers struggle to share their data with each other over long distances in the way that classical computers readily can, where an intermediate calculation might be handed off from one server to another…

08 Jun 23

Nvidia Spools Up Quantum Jet Engine Simulations

Computer & Information Technology

Simulating how air and gases flow through a jet engine is one of the most challenging computing problems in engineering. Engineers at Rolls-Royce think quantum computers could give these calculations a significant boost. So they’ve collaborated with Nvidia to simulate the largest ever quantum circuit for computational fluid dynamics (CFD).…

12 May 23

Chip Charts Course for Quantum Computer Scaling

Computer & Information Technology

Quantum computers can in theory find answers to problems that classical computers would take eons to solve, but researchers currently face great challenges scaling them up for practical use. Recently, a quantum computing startup unveiled the first digital superconducting microchip to control quantum processors, which the company suggests might help…

20 Apr 23

Industry Out of Phase With Supercomputers

Computer & Information Technology

Technical and economic changes in the semiconductor industry threaten to stifle U.S. development of the next generation of high-performance computers, warns a new report from the National Research Council.With Moore’s Law and the scaling of transistors waning, the industry is turning to chip designs that don’t work for the supercomputing…

18 Apr 23

Entangled Photons Produced Entirely On-Chip

Computer & Information Technology

Light-based quantum technology could enable virtually unhackable communication networks and computers that can tackle problems that are currently unsolvable. Today, generating exotic quantum states of light requires bulky equipment that limits the scalability of any potential applications. A new device that squeezes all the necessary components onto a chip smaller…

15 Apr 23

Quantum Technology’s Unsung Heroes

Computer & Information Technology

In a world where quantum technologies are on the rise in computing, cryptography, materials, sensors, telecom, biomed, and AI, it’s easy to forget that not so long ago the words “quantum” and “technology” rarely fit comfortably into a sentence together. A range of trailblazers imagined quantum physics turning into quantum…

09 Mar 23

Two Oddball Ideas for a Megaqubit Quantum Computer

Computer & Information Technology

The perpetual problem with scaling up most quantum computers is a seemingly mundane one—too many cables. Experts say quantum computers might need at least a million qubits kept at near absolute zero to do anything computationally noteworthy. But connecting them all by coaxial cable to control and readout electronics, which…