The prototypes of quantum computers that IBM, Intel, Google, IonQ or Honeywell have, which are five of the companies that are betting more forcefully on this technology, They don’t look the least bit like a PC. Superconducting qubits and trapped ion qubits, which are the two most advanced technologies currently, need to operate in a controlled environment and under very demanding conditions. Otherwise they will not carry out their purpose.
The morphology of quantum computers with superconducting qubits in particular is conditioned by the need to develop a cooling system that allows their quantum processor to work at a temperature of about 20 millikelvins, which is approximately -273 degrees Celsius. And yes, it is imperative that they operate with as much isolation from the environment as possible and at such astonishingly low temperatures.
This minimum energy level allows them to extend the time during which the quantum states of the system are maintained, and, at the same time, also postpone the moment in which quantum decoherence appears. Quantum states are maintained for a limited period of time, and this time is precisely what we have to carry out quantum logical operations with the qubits of our computer. Once overcome, decoherence appears and quantum effects disappearso the quantum computer starts to behave like a classical computer.
Surprisingly, the equipment that you can see in the cover image of this article is a quantum computer. It’s not a PC, but it sure looks like one. And it is not a coincidence. It is manufactured by the Chinese company SpinQ and has three NMR type qubits (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance). It measures 610 x 330 x 560 mm and weighs 44 kg, so although it is a bit bulkier and heavier than a conventional PC, we can easily place it on our desk. However, this is not its purpose. Quantum computers, as simple as they are, are no match for PCs.
What is and what is not SpinQ’s Triangulum quantum computer
Before we go any further, it is worth stopping to review something important: quantum computers are not good at solving the same range of problems that we can face using a classical supercomputer. Scientists are convinced that the fully functional quantum computers that, if all goes well, will arrive in the future will be very good at solving only a portion of those problems.
SpinQ qubits are implemented by taking advantage of the possibility of measuring the spin states of certain atoms in a molecule.
They will be good at simulating quantum systems, such as small molecules, macromolecules, or materials. And also the optimization problems that seek to work with a cost that we want to minimize. Or those of stochastic physics, which take advantage of the random nature of quantum hardware to precisely simulate random processes. However, nothing indicates that they will be useful for office automation or content creation. Not even for other more “serious” tasks, such as working with databases or processing large amounts of information.
All this invites us to wonder how SpinQ has managed to fine-tune such a compact quantum computer. And also what is it for?. The first key is given to us by its qubits, which, unlike those used by IBM, Google or Intel, are not superconductors; they are implemented by taking advantage of the possibility of measuring the spin states of certain atoms in a molecule using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques. A brief note: spin is an intrinsic property of elementary particles, just like electric charge, derived from their angular moment of rotation.
This strategy has allowed this Chinese company to develop reasonably simple qubits, which, moreover, can operate in relatively undemanding environmental conditions. It is a mature technology that has been known for more than two decades. In fact, the quantum computer that first ran the Shor quantum number factorization algorithm used it. This happened in 2001. However, these qubits are very sensitive to noise, so this technique is not appropriate for tuning quantum processors with many qubits.
NMR qubits are simpler than superconducting or trapped ion qubits, so they are cheaper to tune up
Another advantage of NMR qubits is that they are much simpler than superconducting or trapped ion qubits, so they are cheaper to develop. SpinQ secures in their website that his Gemini and Gemini-Mini quantum computers, both with two qubits, and Triangulum, which, as we have seen, has three qubits, they are low-cost quantum equipment. It makes sense that they are much cheaper than superconducting qubit quantum computers from IBM or Google, and also ion trap computers from Honeywell or IonQ. Even so, they are much more expensive than our PCs. In fact, Triangulum, the most advanced of these compact quantum computers, costs approximately 56,000 euros.
There is a question that we have not yet investigated: what are these “cheap” and compact quantum computers for? SpinQ proposes to use them to train students interested in quantum computing, and also to tackle some simple scientific problems. Two and three qubits don’t go far, so it’s clear that this quantum hardware has a very limited scope.
In the field of research, computers with superconducting qubits from IBM, Intel or Google are much more interesting, which have several tens of qubits (hundreds even if we stick to IBM), but still, in the realm of teaching SpinQ teams make sense. In fact, some of its clients are universities spread all over the planet.
rmation: SpinQ
