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Scientists are planning to create a network in the Chicago area tapping the principles of quantum physics. The idea is to prove that quantum physics could provide the basis for an unhackable internet.

This, they say, could have wide-ranging impact on communications, computing and national security.

The quantum network development, supported by the US Department of Energy (DOE), will stretch between the DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory and Fermi National Acceleratory Laboratory, a connection that is said will be the longest in the world to send secure information using quantum physics.

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Researchers at the Center for Quantum Nanoscience (QNS) within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) achieved a major breakthrough in shielding the quantum properties of single atoms on a surface. The scientists used the magnetism of single atoms, known as spin, as a basic building block for quantum information processing. The researchers could show that by packing two atoms closely together they could protect their fragile quantum properties much better than for just one atom.

The spin is a fundamental quantum mechanical object and governs magnetic properties of materials. In a classical picture, the spin often can be considered like the needle of a compass. The north or south poles of the needle, for example, can represent spin up or down. However, according to the laws of quantum mechanics, the spin can also point in both directions at the same time. This superposition state is very fragile since the interaction of the spin with the local environment causes dephasing of the superposition. Understanding the dephasing mechanism and enhancing the quantum coherence are one of the key ingredients toward spin-based quantum information processing.

In this study, published in the journal Science Advances in November 9, 2018, QNS scientists tried to suppress the decoherence of single atoms by assembling them closely together. The spins, for which they used single titanium atoms, were studied by using a sharp metal tip of a scanning tunneling microscope and the atoms’ spin states were detected using electron spin resonance. The researchers found that by bringing the atoms very close together (1 million times closer than a millimeter), they could protect the superposition states of these two magnetically coupled atoms 20 times longer compared to an individual atom.

Remarkable rules have been detected in the apparent chaos of disequilibrium processes. Different systems behave identically in many ways, if they belong to the same “universality class.” This means that experiments can be carried out with quantum systems that are easy to handle in order to obtain precise information about systems that cannot be directly studied in the experiment—such as the Big Bang.

Some phenomena are so complicated that it is impossible to precisely calculate them. This includes large quantum systems, which consist of many particles, particularly when they are not in an equilibrium state, but changing rapidly. Such examples include the wild particle inferno that occurs in particle accelerators when large atoms collide, or conditions just after the Big Bang, when particles rapidly expanded and then cooled.

At TU Wien and Heidelberg University, remarkable rules have been detected in the apparent chaos of disequilibrium processes. This indicates that such processes can be divided into universality classes. Systems belonging to the same class behave identically in many ways. This means that experiments can be carried out with quantum systems that are easy to handle in order to obtain precise information about other systems that cannot be directly studied in the experiment. These findings have since been published in the journal Nature.

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Conference Held at Adelphi University 2013.
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The firm will pit its Bristlecone quantum processor against a classical supercomputer early next year and see which comes out on top.

Exploring alternatives to electron qubits.

So-called “topological insulators” could revolutionize computing.

• By Charles L. Kane and Eugene J. Mele on November 3, 2018

Where in the world is Quantum Sandiego?

Scientists in Australia have for the first time demonstrated the protection of correlated states between paired photons—packets of light energy—using the intriguing physical concept of topology. This experimental breakthrough opens a pathway to build a new type of quantum bit, the building blocks for quantum computers.

The research, developed in close collaboration with Israeli colleagues, is published today in the prestigious journal, Science, a recognition of the foundational importance of this work.

“We can now propose a pathway to build robust entangled states for logic gates using protected pairs of photons,” said lead author Dr. Andrea Blanco-Redondo at the University of Sydney Nano Institute.