Boulder, Colorado-based Atom Computing has beaten tech giant IBM in developing a quantum computer with more than 1,000 qubits. This next-generation quantum computing platform will be available for interested users next year, a company press release said.
Developments in quantum computing have become a race of sorts as businesses from different parts of the world are looking to take the lead in this next frontier of technology. Giants such as Microsoft, Google, and IBM have been working on developing their versions of the complex computer in a domain that is equally accessible to startups.
According to New Atlas, tech giant IBM is expected to unveil Condor, its quantum computer with more than 1,000 qubits in the next few weeks. However, Atom Computing has beaten it in this announcement, thanks to its atomic array approach.
What is atomic array technology?
The major difference between conventional computers and quantum ones is the way they handle and store information. While conventional computers use binary states, i.e., 0 or 1, quantum computers can work with data in both states simultaneously, also known as superposition.
This nature of quantum bits (qubits) gives quantum computers immense computing advantage, allowing them to perform computations that would otherwise take even the fastest supercomputers years to complete.
Atom Computing uses ytterbium atoms for its qubits since it has only two quantum levels in its lowest energy state, making it easier to manipulate and measure. The company has devised an approach where lasers can hold multiple ytterbium atoms in an array and manipulate their states to store and process information.
Dubbed the atomic array technology, Atom Computing has claimed to have developed an array with 1,225 sites that can hold 1,180 qubits together on a single platform, a milestone in quantum computing. In comparison, IBM's Condor is expected to be a 1,121 qubit platform.
Where Atom takes the leap
"This order-of-magnitude leap – from 100 to 1,000-plus qubits within a generation – shows our atomic array systems are quickly gaining ground on more mature qubit modalities," said Rob Hays, CEO of Atom Computing, in the press release. "Scaling to large numbers of qubits is critical for fault-tolerant quantum computing, which is why it has been our focus from the beginning."
However, Atom's achievement is not limited to the sheer number of qubits in its quantum computer. The company has also achieved a record coherence time of 40 seconds for its qubits, which is far greater than the few tens of microseconds of coherence other companies have demonstrated so far. Larger coherence translates to a larger period for which a qubit can store information.
Conventionally, qubits have been known to alter states even on account of their observation. Atom, on the other hand, claims to have made mid-circuit measurements of the quantum state of qubits during computation as well.
These achievements ensure that Atom's platform has higher fidelity, meaning it does not accrue errors and can provide more accurate results. Moreover, the company can also correct errors in real-time and even build "logical qubits" that can deliver correct responses even when errors occur.
Considering that Atom Computing is just five years old and can give tech giants a run for their money, it will be interesting to see how the bigger organizations will survive a tech overhaul if it arrives anytime soon.
Originally published on Interesting Engineering : Original article