A quantum computer made from extremely cold atoms can correct its own errors during long computations, an important prerequisite for becoming truly useful
Category: quantum physics
Light pulses uncover Higgs mode that reshapes perovskite crystal symmetry
Waves of light and sound interact to drive electronic and structural changes in a perovskite crystal. At the atomic scale, nothing is ever truly still. Materials that appear perfectly rigid and motionless to the naked eye are in fact swarms of vibrating atoms. This motion is generally random and uncoordinated, but with the right input, the atoms in certain materials will start to move together, vibrating in sync.
These collective vibrations are a form of sound called phonons, and when tuned just right, they can influence a material’s structure and behavior in dramatic and useful ways. Researchers are working to understand and control this effect to optimize material properties and even access hidden phases of matter.
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory are using light to drive phonon activity in a class of materials called metal halide perovskites, whose customizable structures and photosensitivity hold promise for use in next-generation solar cells, advanced sensors and quantum information technologies.
C12 Introduces Nanoassembly Process for Carbon Nanotube Quantum Chips
C12 introduced a patented nanoassembly technology that enables precise carbon nanotube placement for future quantum processors.
Microsoft claims new quantum chip 1,000 times better than before
At the heart of quantum computing are qubits, which offer the promise of answering questions that defeat today’s machines, but are notoriously delicate and unstable.
Microsoft says the qubits on Majorana 2, its new chip, survive for an average of 20 seconds, rather than the milliseconds of Majorana 1.
That means the new chip is 1,000 times more reliable — an improvement in performance the tech giant compares to the difference between a phone that needs charging every day to one which needs charging every few years.
How ‘asymmetric alloying’ is creating the next generation of luminescent materials
Metal cluster molecules are discrete compounds containing multiple metal atoms held together by metal–metal and metal–ligand bonding. They serve as excellent candidates for catalysts, biosensors, and even for drug development. Developing atomic-level molecular editing methods for such metal clusters remains an important challenge and represents a promising strategy for expanding their structural and functional diversity. Such approaches can enable structure-specific properties, high near-infrared (NIR) photoluminescence quantum yields, and unique reactivities and electronic structures.
Alloying is a powerful method for achieving this goal. In this regard, a key challenge is asymmetric alloying, which introduces asymmetry into the metal cluster by selectively placing heterometal atoms at nonequivalent sites, desymmetrizing the cluster and therefore imparting chirality-associated functionality.
Moreover, highly selective asymmetric synthesis methods for heterometallic clusters are expected to contribute significantly to the development of chiroptical materials. However, methods capable of achieving such controlled asymmetric synthesis have rarely been reported.
Photoexcitation flips 2D moiré devices from metals to insulators in ultrafast test
Quantum materials, materials with properties that are governed by the laws of quantum mechanics describing many-body interactions, have proved promising for the development of various advanced technologies. Many of these materials undergo so-called phase transitions, switching between different physical states that alter how electrons flow through them.
Some previous studies have demonstrated the transition from insulating states to metallic states in quantum materials, via a process called photoexcitation (i.e., the excitation of electrons using light). Yet the opposite transition, from metallic to insulating states, has so far proved difficult to realize using light alone.
Researchers at Columbia University, in collaboration with UC Riverside, recently demonstrated an ultrafast photo-induced metal-to-insulator transition in two-dimensional (2D) moiré heterostructures, quantum materials consisting of 2D layers stacked on top of each other, with a slight misalignment between them.
Quantum shell structure reveals new rule for proton-neutron pairing inside nuclei
Nuclear physicists used a little magic in their latest experiment conducted at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, and the result has revealed surprising new information about the behavior of protons and neutrons inside the atom’s nucleus. Specifically, the research revealed another requirement that determines how protons and neutrons pair up.
The result is reported in the journal Nature.
The research involves short-range correlations (SRCs). This phenomenon describes when a proton and a neutron, or two protons or two neutrons, briefly pair up inside the nucleus.
Physicists propose that our universe may contain three dimensions of time
A new relativity proposal says faster-than-light observers could help explain quantum behavior and reshape causality.
Chip-scale ‘acoustic atom’ controls sound waves to imitate atomic energy levels and advance computing
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. What goes up must come down. Physical laws like these govern all of the natural world—except for the tiny internal components of today’s microprocessors, which operate according to the unique and complicated rules of quantum physics.
As the microprocessors that power computers, medical equipment, sensors, and more continue to shrink in size, engineers face challenges controlling quantum-scale systems. But in a step forward for the technology, researchers at Virginia Tech have developed an “acoustic atom”—a chip-scale device that traps and controls sound waves in ways that mimic the behavior of real atoms. Long term, these advances could influence technologies connected to quantum artificial intelligence (AI), telecommunication, medical imaging, GPS, and more.
The research is published in Physical Review Letters by Linbo Shao, assistant professor in Virginia Tech’s Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, along with colleagues at the university’s Center for Power Electronic Systems, Department of Physics, and Center for Quantum Information Science and Engineering and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
‘Don’t scare the cat!’ Engineers find smarter way to measure quantum systems
UNSW Sydney engineers have riffed on the famous Schrödinger’s cat analogy to demonstrate a more efficient way to eliminate errors in quantum computing.
“Imagine you’re trying to find your cat hiding in one of eight identical cardboard boxes, in a dark and noisy room,” says UNSW Scientia Professor Andrea Morello.
“You are not allowed to enter the room—opening the door may kill the cat. What is the optimal strategy to find out where it’s hiding? Our team of quantum researchers have found an answer to this problem, and it might be an important milestone on the road to building a quantum computer.”