One of the ways we can realize the full potential of quantum computers is by relying on both light and matter. In this way, information can be stored and processed as well as transmitted at the speed of light. Scientists have just taken one step closer to this goal. It was the successful production of the largest light-matter hybrid ever created.
These quasi-particles, known as Rydberg polarizers, are produced by a piece stone contains Cu2O oxide crystals from a mine in Namibia. This is one of the few places in the world where this high quality oxide can be found.
The crystal removed from the stone is polished and made thinner than the width of a human hair and is sandwiched between two mirrors to trap light. Generates Rydberg polarizations 100 times larger than any previously seen.
This achievement brings us closer to producing a quantum simulator that can operate on these Rydberg polarizers. They use quantum bits or qubits to store information in the 0, 1, and intermediate values. Whereas classical computer bits are just 1s and 0.
Physicist Hamid Ohadi from the University of St Andrews in the UK said: “Building a quantum simulation with light is the holy grail of science. We have taken a giant leap forward by creating polarizers. Rydberg, its key ingredient.”
Unlocking the potential of quantum computers
Ancient gem in Namibia. Photo: University of St Andrews.
What makes Rydberg polarizers special is that they are constantly transitioning from light to matter and vice versa. The researchers compared light and matter to two sides of the same coin. At the physical plane polarities can interact.
This is important, because light particles move quickly but do not interact with each other. Matter is slower but it can interact. Combining these two capabilities could help unlock the potential of quantum computers.
This flexibility is important in managing quantum states that are not known until they are observed. A fully functioning quantum computer built on this technology is still far away, but we are now closer than ever to being able to bring them together.
Rydberg polarizers are formed through the combination of excitons and photons. This is where the ancient gem from Namibia plays a role: Cu2O oxide is a superconductor, a material that allows electrons to move without resistance. Previous research has shown that it contains giant Rydberg excitons.
Excitons are electrically neutral standard particles that can be forced under the right conditions to pair with particles of light. These large excitons found in oxides can combine with photons in a special setup known as Fabry-Pérot microgravity. It’s basically a sandwich made of mirrors. This is an important factor to be able to create larger Rydberg polar particles.
Physicist Sai Kiran Rajendran from the University of St Andrews said: “Buying stones on eBay is easy. The challenge is to get the Rydberg polarizers to exist in an extremely narrow range of colors.”
Once complete quantum computers can be put together, perhaps using these Rydberg polarizers, the exponentially improved computational power will allow them to solve extreme calculations. complexities beyond the scope of the computers we have today.
Examples given by the researchers include the development of high-temperature superconducting materials and understanding more about how proteins fold, increasing our ability to produce therapeutic drugs.
The methods outlined in the new study will need further refinement to be able to use these particles in quantum circuits, but the basics are there now. The team suggests that their results could also be improved in the future.
“These results pave the way for the realization of strongly interacting, polarized excitons, and the discovery of closely correlated phases of matter using light on a probe,” the researchers write in the paper. chips”.
Article referenced source: Sciencealert
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