Quantum computers: what are they and how they can change lives

A few years ago, in 2007, Ignacio Cirac, director of the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics in Germany, stated in an interview with the Spanish newspaper 'La Vanguardia' that quantum computers are the future and have nothing to do with the computers with which we are accustomed, not even with the most powerful in the world.

What quantum computers make possible are calculations that are still impossible today, or at least almost impossible, as the whole field of high technology is trying to surpass each other by proposing various models. Some have come very close. Let's find out what quantum computers are and why everyone should have one.

Photo: Pixabay

Teresa Versyp, professor of physics and author of several books on quantum physics, says in her book 'Sorvolando sul territorio de Quantum': "In quantum computer programming, new languages, new algorithms and programming techniques based on quantum logic are developed".

Photo: Pixabay

The main difference between a traditional and a quantum computer is the number of bits they can use. In quantum computers, we no longer speak of bits, but of qubits (quantum bits).

Photo: Pixabay

The property that makes qubits much more special than conventional bits is what is known as superposition, a principle of quantum physics in which a single particle can be in different states at the same time.

Photo: Pixabay

While in a conventional computer a bit is represented by zero or one, ie in a binary system, in a quantum computer the qubit can be zero or one or zero and one at the same time.

Photo: Pixabay

All this is due to the above-mentioned principle of the superposition of quantum states, thanks to which it will be possible to carry out calculations in parallel and not one after the other, as happens in the computers we are used to.

Photo: Pixabay

In this way calculations can be performed very quickly and the computing power can be used to reduce the time from years to minutes.

Photo: Pixabay

Another principle that characterizes quantum physics and that is used in quantum computation is entanglement. Thus, two particles united in a state of entanglement are still 'attuned' even when separated by very large distances: this means that the change induced in one of them will immediately affect the others.

In the case of quantum computers, the entanglement takes place between qubits and allows for a very large acceleration in the processing of calculations.

Photo: Pixabay

Of course, not everything is as simple as it seems. There are a number of problems with achieving specific results. First of all, the quality of the qubits must be kept high. Although they are very powerful, they are also extremely sensitive.

Photo: Pixabay

Vibrations or temperature changes in the environment are enough for them to lose their characteristic properties. Particles are so unstable that it takes very little for them to lose their processed data or information.

Photo: Pixabay

Now that we have seen what a quantum computer is, let's see if any of the various giants of the technological world have already managed to get at least a prototype. First up is IBM, which developed a 7-qubit model in 2001 and released two more models with 16 and 17 qubits in the following years. Also, company announced a 20-qubit computer for 2019, has managed to build a 56-qubit model in their labs.

But the flagship model, if we can call it that, that IBM has developed is called 'Eagle' and was announced at the Quantum Summit 2021: it is the first 127-qubit quantum processor. "The introduction of the 'Eagle' processor is an important step towards the day when quantum computers can surpass classical computers in useful applications," said Darío Gil, director of IBM Research.

"Quantum computing has the power to transform almost every industry and help us solve the biggest problems of our time. That's why IBM continues to drive innovation in quantum hardware and software, developing execution modes that enable quantum and classic workloads to enhance each other and create a global ecosystem that is essential for the growth of the quantum industry," says the Director of IBM Research.

But not only IBM, Google also developed Bristlecone, a 72-qubit supercomputer, in its Quantum AI Lab in 2018. In 2019, the Financial Times reported (but later removed) that Google achieved "quantum superiority" by performing a calculation in just 3 minutes; calculations that would have taken the IBM Summit, the world's fastest (non-quantum) computer, about 10,000 years.

Photo: Pixabay

For its part, IBM replied that with a different configuration, 'Summit' would have taken about two days to perform the same calculation.

Photo: Pixabay

In addition to IBM and Google, Microsoft, Samsung and Amazon, among others, have also decided to develop quantum processors. In short: quantum computing is already a reality, we just have to wait and see what the future will bring. Quantum, of course.

Photo: Pixabay