A Hype-Free Look at Quantum Computing
March 31, 2020
How refreshing—The Times of Israel shares a sane view of quantum computing in its post, “Quantum Future: When Will the Super-Fast Computers Be Around?” Alas, such a useful perspective is rare amidst the marketing baloney.
Writer Pabalta Rijal begins by noting that quantum technology does hold great promise. Once the kinks are ironed out, it could solve problems of scale and complexity that are beyond the computers we are used to. Researchers have been working on quantum computing since the early 1980s, and the field has made several breakthroughs in recent years. Last October, Google declared it had reached “quantum supremacy”—the point at which a quantum system is able to solve a problem that traditional computers cannot. This does not mean the tech is anywhere near ready for the mainstream, but it gives researchers hope. What hurdles remain? Rijal writes:
“Today, quantum computers are prone to errors as they are very sensitive to defects in the underlying materials and such defects are highly challenging to control. Such interactions between Qubits (Quantum bits) and defects cause Quantum Decoherence – that is the loss of the quantum behavior of a quantum system (and, in consequence, the loss of information) and this is one of the biggest challenges in quantum computing. Advancements in materials engineering could in the future help address the problem. The error rate is directly related to material quality and new technologies used in the semiconductor manufacturing industry could potentially help improve the quantum computing industry to scale, [Applied Materials’ Nir] Yahav said. ‘To realize a quantum future, we will need collaboration between materials companies, equipment companies, and device companies, as well as academics and government institutes,’ Yahav stressed. ‘Materials engineering can play a critical role in helping push quantum technology into real commercialization,’ he added.”
So it would be premature to fall for the hype that declares quantum computing is just around the corner. The technology does, however, look more and more promising. Let us hope all parties involved can play well together.
Cynthia Murrell, March 31, 2020
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