Scientists Find Flaw in Quantum Dot Construction

ThePolkapunk writes "Scientists have been having problems in predicting the behavior of Quantum Dots, which are considered to be the most likely material to be used to build nanocomputers. Physorg is reporting that physicists at Ohio University believe they've found the problem, and it's with a flaw in the construction of quantum dots. If their theory pans out, "It's one more step towards the holy grail of finding a better quantum bit, which hopefully will lead to a quantum computer."" We first mentioned this about six years ago.

Comments

Re:At what point is a computer powerful enough?

[Carlbunn]

Bad, bad geek! There's no such thing as "too much computer power"

Discount Quantum Dots

[EdgeTreader]

"New & used Quantum Dots. aff Check out the huge selection now" ...ebay ad running next to TFA

Star Trek?

[jpop32]

Doesn't the article read just like your typical Star Trek plot?

You have a noble experiment:
Nanoscientists dream of developing a quantum computer, a device the size of a grain of sand that could be faster and more powerful than today's PCs.
So, after they have
blasted the quantum dots with light to create the quantum mechanical state
they encounter the problem:
they couldn't consistently control that state
So, the science officers get the work and after some time the find out the cause of the problem:
the wetting layer caused interference, instead of allowing the light to enter the dot and trigger the quantum state

And, after some hard thinking Wesley Crusher...
suggests that scientists could tweak the process by re-focusing the beam of light or changing the duration of the light pulses to negate the effects of the wetting layer!

And the day is saved.

Re:I guess this seems as good a place as anywhere

[lgw]

Actual real-world viruses are genuine nanotechnology. Further, they have been evolving for thousands of years to kill humans. It's believed that actual real-world viruses killed 95% of humans in North America and 90% of humans in Central America soon after the Spanish began exploring. Actual real-world viruses are the best possible human-killing nanotechnology given actual real-world material and energy limitations, the laws of physics, and the fact we don't live in a science-fiction novel.

Anything mankind could come up with would be wimpy by comparison. If you disagree, you clearly haven't been put down by this year's flu. ;)