In our everyday classical computers, 0s and 1s are associated with switches and electronic circuits turning on and off as part of the computer using a binary number system to calculate possibilities and perform operations. For example, when a computer mouse moves, a sensor tells the computer that an electrical signal has been converted into a binary value or number. Further, this number represents a location that is then represented on the computer screen all of which is embodied by the byte that is the building block of current computers. The sensor message to the computer is also saved to memory. Some calculations have too many possibilities for even a traditional computer to calculate like simulating the weather or calculating scrambled combinations of prime numbers. Quantum is the state of things being unknown at the subatomic level until they can be observed and moves from the byte to the qubit. In a quantum computer, it is said that the values assigned to 0 and 1 can occur at the same time. The reason this impossibility is possible is because of quantums subatomic level where protons and electrons are acting in a wild way beyond the rules of nature as we tend to think of them. Picture The Avengers superhero Antman shrinking into the quantum zone where time did not even move in a linear fashion. In computer terms, once the values of 0 and 1 can happen at the same time, it allows the quantum computer to consider trillions of possibilities or more in the same instant, dwarfing the number of calculations that our traditional computers, stuck in binary counting, can do. This process is called superposition. Superposition ends once a specialized particle, or qubit, slows/is observable, thereby emerging from its quantum state. We stick the qubit in an artificial space vacuum so that it does not get observed or interfered with and remains dynamic. Pictures of quantum computers often show tubes the size of a household refrigerator. But most of the tubing is not the central computer processor as much as the process used to maintain the qubits at the absolute zero quantum state. Since around 1977, RSA has been among the most widely used systems for secure data transmission underlying the Internet, serving as the backbone of the NYSE, most large institutions and most individual online users. What is stopping an average person from hacking anyones elses website is that RSA is easy to build, and being based on two pseudo-random prime numbers, hard to burst for traditional computers limited binary system calculation capacity.

cnxps.cmd.push(function () { cnxps({ playerId: '36af7c51-0caf-4741-9824-2c941fc6c17b' }).render('4c4d856e0e6f4e3d808bbc1715e132f6'); });

See more here:

Quantum Computing 101 -What it is, how is it different and why it matters - The Jerusalem Post

Safe Deposit. Symbol of cryptocurrency safety. The man puts a physical bitcoin in small Residential ... [+] Vault. Toned soft focus picture.

Theres a lurking fear in cryptocurrency communities about quantum computing. Could it break cryptocurrencies and the encryption that protects them? How close might that be? Do the headlines around quantum supremacy mean that my private keys are at risk?

ADVERTISEMENT

The simple answer: no. But lets dive deeper into this phenomenon and really try to understand why this is the case and how quantum computing will interact with cryptocurrencies.

To start off with, lets define quantum computing and the classical computing were all used to, and seeing where the terms compare and contrast with one another. Quantum computing can be roughly placed in the same paradigm as classical pre-1900s physics and modern physics which comprises Einsteins insights on relativity and quantum physics.

Classical computing is the kind of computers weve grown used to, the extensions of Turings theories on computation, the laptops or mobile phones that you carry around with you. Classical computing relies heavily on the manipulation of physical bits the famous 0s and 1s.

Quantum computing relies on qubits, bits that are held in superposition and use quantum principles to complete calculations. The information captured or generated by a quantum system benefits from the ability of qubits to be in more than one physical state at a time (superposition), but there is information decay in capturing the state of the system.

One point that will be immediately relevant to the discussion is that quantum computers are not universally better than classical computers as a result. When people speak about quantum supremacy, including reports from Google GOOG and/or China, they really mean that a quantum computer can do a certain task better than classical computers, perhaps one that is impossible to do in any reasonable timeframe with classical computers.

We can think of this in terms of time scales from a computing perspective there are some, but not all functions, that go from being impossible to accomplish in any meaningful human-level time period to ones that become slow but manageable with a large enough quantum computer.

In a way, you can think of Turing tests and quantum supremacy tests in much the same way. Designed at first to demonstrate the superiority of one system over another (in the case of Turing tests, artificial language generation vs. human language comprehension, in the case of quantum supremacy tests, quantum computing systems vs classical computers), theyve become more gimmick than substance.

A quantum computer has to perform better at some minute and trivial task that might seem impressive but completely useless in much the same way a Turing test of machine-generated English might fool a Ukrainian child with no fluency in the language.

ADVERTISEMENT

This means that we have to narrow down to a function that quantum computers can be better on that would materially affect cryptocurrencies or the encryption theyre built on in order for quantum supremacy to matter.

One area of specific focus is Shors Algorithm, which can factor large prime numbers down into two smaller ones. This is a very useful property for breaking encryption, since the RSA family of encryption depends on factoring large prime numbers in exactly this manner. Shors Algorithm works in theory with a large enough quantum computer and so its a practical concern that eventually, Shors Algorithm might come into play and among other things, RSA encryption might be broken.

On this front, the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has already started gathering proposals for post-quantum cryptography, encryption that would operate and not be broken even with much larger quantum computers than the ones were currently able to build. They estimate that large enough quantum computers to disrupt classical encryption will potentially arrive in the next twenty years.

ADVERTISEMENT

For cryptocurrencies, a fork in the future that might affect large parts of the chain, but it will be somewhat predictable there is a lot of thought being placed on post-quantum encryption technology. Bitcoin would not be one of the first planks to fall if classical encryption were suddenly broken for a number of reasons. Yet, a soft fork (as opposed to a hard one) might be enough to help move crypto-assets from suddenly insecure keys to secure post-quantum encryption.

Even an efficient implementation of Shors Algorithm may not break some of the cryptography standards used in bitcoin. SHA-256 is theorized to be quantum-resistant.

The most efficient theoretical implementation of a quantum computer to detect a SHA-256 collision is actually less efficient than the theorized classical implementation for breaking the standard. The wallet file in the original Bitcoin client is using SHA-512 (a more secure version than SHA-256) to help encrypt private keys.

ADVERTISEMENT

Most of the encryption in modern cryptocurrencies are built on elliptic curve cryptography rather than RSA especially in the generation of signatures in bitcoin which requires ECDSA. This is largely due to the fact that elliptic curves are correspondingly harder to crack than RSA (sometimes exponentially so) from classical computers.

Thanks to Moores law and better classical computing, secure RSA key sizes have grown so large so as to be impractical compared to elliptic curve cryptography so most people will opt for elliptic curve cryptography for performance reasons for their systems, which is the case with bitcoin.

However, quantum computers seem to flip this logic on its head: given a large enough quantum computer with enough qubits, you can break elliptic curve cryptography easier than you might break RSA.

ADVERTISEMENT

Both elliptic curve cryptography are widely used in a bunch of other industries and use cases as well RSA-2048 and higher are standards in the conventional banking system to send encrypted information, for example.

Yet, even with a large enough quantum computer, you would still have to reveal or find somebodys public keys so they could be subject to attack. With cryptocurrency wallet reuse being frowned upon, and a general encouragement of good privacy practices, the likelihood of this attack is already being reduced.

Another area of attack could be Grovers algorithm, which can exponentially speed up mining with a large enough quantum computer though its probable that ASICs, the specialized classical computers mostly used to mine bitcoin now, would be faster compared to the earliest versions of more complete quantum computers.

ADVERTISEMENT

This poses more of a stronger threat when it comes to the state of cryptocurrencies: the ability to mine quickly in a sudden quantum speedup could lead to destabilization of prices and more importantly control of the chain itself an unexpected quantum speedup could, if hidden, lead to vast centralization of mining and possible 51% attacks. Yet the most likely case is that larger systems of quantum computing will be treated like any kind of hardware, similar to the transition for miners between GPUs, FGPAs and ASICs a slow economic transition to better tooling.

Its conceivable that these avenues of attack and perhaps other more unpredictable ones might emerge, yet post-quantum encryption planning is already in process and through the mechanism of forks, cryptocurrencies can be updated to use post-quantum encryption standards and defend against these weaknesses.

Bitcoin and even other cryptocurrencies and their history are filled with examples of hardware and software changes that had to be made to make the network more secure and performant and good security practices in the present (avoiding wallet reuse) can help prepare for a more uncertain future.

ADVERTISEMENT

So quantum computers being added to the mix wont suddenly render classical modes of encryption useless or mining trivial quantum supremacy now doesnt mean that your encryption or the security of bitcoin is at risk right at this moment.

The real threat is when quantum computers become many scales larger than they currently are by which point planning for post-quantum encryption, which is already well on the way would come to the fore, and at which point bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies can soft fork and use both decentralized governance and dynamism when needed in the face of new existential threats to defeat the threat of quantum supremacy.

Read this article:

Here's Why Quantum Computing Will Not Break Cryptocurrencies - Forbes

December 22, 2020 10:00 ET | Source: Research Dive

New York, USA, Dec. 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A latest report published by Research Dive on the globalquantum computing market sheds light on the current outlook and future growth of the market. As per the report, the global quantum computing market is expected to garner $667.3 million by growing at a CAGR of 30.0% from 2020 to 2027. This report is drafted by market experts by evaluating all the important aspects of the market. It is a perfect source of information and statistics for new entrants, market players, shareholders, stakeholders, investors, etc.

Check out How COVID-19 impacts the Global Quantum Computing Market. Click here to Connect with our Analyst to get more Market Insight: https://www.researchdive.com/connect-to-analyst/8332

Exclusive Offer - As we are running Anniversary discount, here are some additional benefits which you are entitled to avail with this report.

Free Excel Data Pack The report will cover impact of COVID-19 on this market. 20% Free Customisation 16 analyst hours support Quarterly Update on Enterprise License 24 hours priority response

Download Sample Report of the Global Quantum Computing Market and Reveal the Market Overview, Opportunity, Expansion, Growth and More: https://www.researchdive.com/download-sample/8332

The report includes:

A summary of the market with its definition, advantages, and application areas. Detailed insights on market position, dynamics, statistics, growth rate, revenues, market shares, and future predictions. Key market segments, boomers, restraints, and investment opportunities. Present situation of the global as well as regional market from the viewpoint of companies, countries, and end industries. Information on leading companies, current market trends and developments, Porter Five Analysis, and top winning business strategies.

Factors Impacting the Market Growth:

As per the report, the growing cyber-attacks across the world is hugely contributing to the growth of the global quantum computing market. Moreover, the rising implementation of quantum computing technologies in agriculture for helping farmers to improve the efficiency and yield of crops is likely to unlock rewarding opportunities for the market growth. However, absence of highly experienced employees, having knowledge regarding quantum computing is likely to hinder the market growth.

Access Varied Market Reports Bearing Extensive Analysis of the Market Situation, Updated With The Impact of COVID-19: https://www.researchdive.com/covid-19-insights

COVID-19 Impact Analysis:

The sudden outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has made a significant impact on the global quantum computing market. During this crisis period, quantum computing technology can be used for medical research and other activities related to COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, the technology can be beneficial for developing advanced drugs at an accelerated speed and for analyzing different types of interactions between biomolecules and fight infectious like viruses. In addition, businesses are greatly investing in the development of quantum computers for drug discovery amidst the crisis period. All these factors are expected to unlock novel investment opportunities for the market growth in the upcoming years.

Check out all Information and communication technology & media Industry Reports: https://www.researchdive.com/information-and-communication-technology-and-media

Segment Analysis:

The report segments the quantum computing market into offerings type, end user, and application.

By offerings type, the report further categorizes the market into: Consulting solutions Systems

Among these, the systems segment is expected to dominate the market by garnering a revenue of $313.3 million by 2027. This is mainly due to growing use of quantum computing in AI, radar making, machine learning technologies, and many others.

Based on application, the report further classifies the market into: Optimization Machine Learning Material Simulation

Among these, themachine learning segment is expected to observe accelerated growth and garner $236.9 million by 2027. This is mainly due to significant role of quantum computing in enhancing runtime, capacity, and learning efficiency. Moreover, quantum machine learning has the potential to speed-up various machine learning processes such as optimization, linear algebra, deep learning, and Kernel evaluation, which is likely to boost the market growth during the forecast period.

Regional Analysis:

The report explains the lookout of the global quantum computing market across several regions, including: Europe Asia Pacific LAMEA North America

Among these, the Asia-Pacific region is estimated to lead the market growth by growing at a striking growth rate of 31.60% during the forecast period. This is mainly because of the growing adoption of quantum computing technologies in numerous sectors including chemicals, healthcare, utilities & pharmaceuticals, and others in this region.

Market Players and Business Strategies:

The report offers a list of global key players in the quantum computing market and discloses some of their strategies and developments. The key players listed in the report are:

QC Ware, Corp. Cambridge Quantum Computing Limited D-Wave Systems Inc., International Business Machines Corporation Rigetti Computing 1QB Information Technologies River Lane Research StationQ Microsoft Anyon Google Inc.

These players are massively contributing to the growth of the market by performing activities such as mergers and acquisitions, novel developments, geographical expansions, and many more.

Our market experts have made use of several tools, methodologies, and research methods to get in-depth insights of the global quantum computing sector. Moreover, we strive to deliver a customized report to fulfill special requirements of our clients, on demand.Click Here to Get Absolute Top Companies Development Strategies Summary Report.

TRENDING REPORTS WITH COVID-19 IMPACT ANALYSIS

Mobile Device Management Market https://www.researchdive.com/412/mobile-device-management-market Data Center Power Market https://www.researchdive.com/415/data-center-power-market Augmented Reality (AR) in Healthcare Market https://www.researchdive.com/covid-19-insights/218/global-augmented-reality-ar-in-healthcare-market AI in Construction Market https://www.researchdive.com/covid-19-insights/222/ai-in-construction-market

The rest is here:

Global Quantum Computing Market Predicted to Garner $667.3 Million by 2027, Growing at 30.0% CAGR from 2020 to 2027 - [193 pages] Informative Report...

Traditional computers process data called binary bits as either a zero or a one. The bits in quantum computers (called qubits) can be both one and zero simultaneously, raising the potential processing power exponentially. This ability enables quantum computers to simultaneously explore several possibilities when traditional computers have to run each option one at a time.

There are several different ways to build a quantum computer, and the technology is so new nobody knows whats best yet. Scientists are still working out how to make them meet expectations and be of practical use. The goal is to achieve quantum supremacy (aka quantum advantage) when a quantum computer vastly outperforms a conventional machine on a given task.

Google was the first to achieve quantum supremacy in 2019. The company claims that its 53-qubit Sycamore processor performed a computation within 200 seconds. That same task would have taken the worlds most powerful supercomputer 10,000 years. The Sycamore is based on qubits represented by superconducting materials.

This year, a China team developed a photon-based quantum computer that demonstrated quantum supremacy the second group to do so since Google. The device (called Jiuzhang) is made to carry out a single specific type of calculation Gaussian boson sampling. It performed so well that it conducted a calculation in 200 seconds that would have taken the worlds best supercomputer 2.5 billion years to complete. Thats over half the age of Earth!

Jian-Wei Pan, a scientist from the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei, said:

We have shown that we can use photons, the fundamental unit of light, to demonstrate quantum computational power well beyond the classical counterpart. The calculation that they carried out called the boson-sampling problem is not just a convenient vehicle for demonstrating quantum advantage, but has potential practical applications in graph theory, quantum chemistry, and machine learning.

Physicist Ian Walmsley at Imperial College London said:

This is certainly a tour de force experiment and an important milestone.

If the team can build a programmable chip with such power, several crucial computational problems could be solved, such as how molecules vibrate and how proteins dock to one another.

Other quantum news coming from China includes a team of scientists who have achieved quantum communication by satellites. They successfully sent a quantum-encrypted message hundreds of miles further than anyones ever sent one before.

Meanwhile, in the US, a startup called IonQ revealed its next-generation quantum computer system that will be available for purchase soon, and quantum physicists working for the Department of Energy are on the verge of developing a quantum internet. Quantum teleportation is also in the works in New York, with a team recently managing to transport massless particles (photons) and particles of matter (electrons).

See the original post:

Quantum Computer Completed A 2.5-Billion-Year Task In 200 Seconds - Intelligent Living

SCOTLAND has the expertise to potentially equal tech giants like IBM, Google and Intel in the race to develop next-generation computing technologies, scientists believe.

The universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Strathclyde have collaborated to form a new national centre that brings together internationally-recognised experts in hardware, software and application development for quantum computing a sector predicted to be worth $65 billion by 2030.

The new Scottish Centre for Innovation in Quantum Computing and Simulation has received funding from the Scottish Government to explore inward investment opportunities.

Quantum computers process information using the properties of tiny microscopic particles or nanoelectronic circuits making them exponentially more powerful than traditional computers. Tech giants including IBM, Google, Microsoft, Intel and Amazon are investing millions of dollars in developing the worlds first workable quantum computers.

Last October, Google announced that its quantum computer took three minutes and 20 seconds to solve a problem that would have taken the worlds fastest supercomputer around 10,000 years to complete.

There are problems that even the worlds biggest supercomputers are unable to solve, said Andrew Daley, a professor of quantum computing at the University of Strathclyde. For example, how to optimise traffic flow by controlling motorways in various places; how to maximise fuel efficiency when big aircraft take off or how to invest in stocks for the maximum reward and minimum risk. Because we can do computing in a very different way on a quantum computer, these are the kinds of things we believe we may be able to do that we can't do on a traditional computer.

Scottish universities are major beneficiaries of the UK governments 1 billion UK National Quantum Technologies Programme, a 10-year drive to put the UK at the forefront of quantum technology research and commercialisation.

Edinburgh University already hosts the UKs 79m national supercomputer and is one of the partners in a 10m project to develop the UKs first commercial quantum computer.

Strathclyde Universitys quantum computing research includes a 10m industry-led project addressing technology barriers to scaling quantum hardware. And Glasgow Universitys projects include being part of a 7m UK consortium aimed at commercialising quantum technologies.

Ivan McKee, Scottish trade, investment and innovation minister, said: This joint project between the universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Strathclyde seeks to position Scotland as the go-to location for quantum computing and has the potential to attract significant international research funding and create jobs.

It also provides a model of collaboration which could be applied in other sectors to attract inward investment and boost Scotlands economy.

The Scottish Government funding will finance a feasibility study into inward investment opportunities in quantum computing. These might include partnerships with major technology companies, institutions or countries who already have their own quantum computing programmes.

Microsoft, for example, has quantum computing partnerships with universities and other places in the world, Professor Daley said. There are large centres of quantum computing in Singapore and in the Netherlands at Delft University. The German and US governments have also created clusters in quantum computing and other quantum technologies.

Professor Elham Kashefi, who leads the quantum team at Edinburgh Universitys School of Informatics, believes the new centre could help unlock the potential of quantum tech in an unprecedented way.

She added: Perhaps such a dream could be only achieved at large corporates like IBM, Microsoft, Amazon or Google. Yet I believe the flexibility that the centre could afford as a research institute, compared to a fully business-driven programme, could be the very fundamental bridge that our field desperately needs.

Martin Weides, professor of quantum technologies at Glasgow Universitys James Watt School of Engineering, said: Theres now an international race to realise practical technologies and applications for quantum computing. I believe the Scottish Centre for Innovation in Quantum Computing and Simulation will bring together the strong academic excellence at the three founding universities to give Scotland the edge to develop a vibrant quantum ecosystem.

Read more from the original source:

University collaboration gives Scotland the edge in global quantum computing race - HeraldScotland

Jiuzhang, a quantum computer prototype developed at the University of Science and Technology of China, represents such a giant leap forward in computing that just 200 seconds of its time dedicated to a specific task would equal 600 million years of computing time for today's current most powerful supercomputer.

On Dec 4, Science magazine announced a major breakthrough made by a team from USTC headed by renowned physicist Pan Jianwei. The team had jointly developed a 76-photon Jiuzhang, realizing an initial milestone on the path to full-scale quantum computing.

This quantum computational advantage, also known as "quantum supremacy", established China's leading position in the sphere of quantum computing research in the world.

USTC has produced a string of wonders: Sending Wukong, China-'s first dark matter particle explorer, and Mozi, the world's first quantum communication satellite, into space; and witnessing the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory sending off light from the Hefei Light Source.

During the past 50 years, USTC has made significant achievements in the fields of quantum physics, high-temperature superconductivity, thermonuclear fusion, artificial intelligence and nanomaterials.

Technology is the foundation of a country's prosperity, while innovation is the soul of national progress.

Since 1970, when USTC was relocated to Hefei, Anhui province, it has focused on research and innovation, targeting basic and strategic work in a bid to fulfill its oath to scale "the peak of sciences".

The large number of world-renowned innovative achievements shined glory on USTC, exhibiting its courage to innovate, daring to surpass its peers and unremitting pursuit of striving to be a top university in the world.

Although USTC was set up only 62 years ago, it established the country's first national laboratory and also the first national research center. It has obtained the largest number of achievements selected among China's Top 10 News for Scientific and Technological Progress each year since its founding.

Its reputation as an "important stronghold of innovation" has become stronger over the years.

While facing the frontiers of world science and technology, the main economic battlefield, the major needs of China and people's healthcare, USTC focuses on cultivating high-level scientific and technological innovation talents and teams, and shoulders national tasks.

It has used innovation to generate transformative technologies and develop strategic emerging industries, perfecting its ability to serve national strategic demand, and regional economic and social development.

Facing sci-tech frontiers

USTC has top disciplines covering mathematics, physics, chemistry, Earth and space sciences, biology and materials science. While based on basic research, USTC pays close attention to cutting-edge exploration, encouraging innovative achievements.

Serving major needs

In response to major national needs, USTC has led and participated in a number of significant scientific and technological projects that showcase the nation's strategic aims.

For example, sending the Mozi satellite and Wukong probe into space. Meanwhile, it also participated in the development of core components of Tiangong-2, China's first space lab, and Tianwen-1, the nation's first Mars exploration mission.

Main economic battlefield

In the face of economic and social development needs, USTC has balanced meeting national needs and boosting exploration in frontier spheres.

It has witnessed a series of innovative achievements in the fields of materials science, energy, environment, advanced manufacturing, AI, big data and security.

Safeguarding health

USTC's School of Life Sciences was founded in 1958 with emphasis on biophysics. In recent years, this flourished into many branches of biological sciences.

The new School of Life Sciences was established in Hefei in 1998. Based on its years of cultivation in the field of life sciences, the university has contributed much to China's medical science.

In 2020, the university developed the "USTC protocol" to treat COVID-19 patients, which has been introduced to more than 20 countries and regions.

More here:

Scaling the heights of quantum computing to deliver real results - Chinadaily.com.cn - China Daily

All cryptocurrencies are based on cryptography and require miners to solve extremely complex mathematical problems in order to secure the network. The idea behind quantum computing is that it will be able to crack Bitcoins algorithm much faster than the network.

The basic principle is that Bitcoins network has to be sufficiently fast in order for a quantum attacker to not have enough time to derive the private key of a specific public key before the network.

So far, it seems that quantum computers would take around 8 hours to derive a Bitcoin private key which, in theory, means the network is secure against them. It seems that the mark right now is around 10 minutes. If quantum computers can get close to this time, the Bitcoin network could be compromised.

Its also important to note that quantum computing not only poses a threat to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies but to other platforms, even banks. Many platforms use encryption which would be broken if quantum computing becomes real, which means the implications of this technology go way beyond just cryptocurrencies.

Theoretically, cryptocurrencies have several ways to mitigate or completely stop quantum computing attacks in the future. For instance, a soft fork on the network of an asset could be enough to at least move some of the assets that are insecure.

Additionally, there are many algorithms that are theorized to be quantum-resistant. In fact, SHA-256 which is currently used should be resistant to these types of attacks. According to recent statistics, around 25% of Bitcoin in circulation remains vulnerable to quantum attacks. You should transfer your coins to a new p2pkh address to make sure they are safe.

More:

Bitcoin is quantum computing resistant regardless of rising fears among investors - FXStreet

Physicists have confirmed the existence of an extraordinary, flat particle that could be the key that unlocks quantum computing.

Get unlimited access to the weird world of Pop Mech.

What is the rare and improbable anyon, and how on Earth did scientists verify them?

[T]hese particle-like objects only arise in realms confined to two dimensions, and then only under certain circumstanceslike at temperatures near absolute zero and in the presence of a strong magnetic field, Discover explains.

Scientists have theorized about these flat, peculiar particle-like objects since the 1980s, and the very nature of them has made it sometimes seem impossible to ever verify them. But the qualities scientists believe anyons have also made them sound very valuable to quantum research and, now, quantum computers.

This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

The objects have many possible positions and "remember," in a way, what has happened. In a press release earlier this fall, Purdue University explains more about the value of anyons:

GeoSafari Jr. Microscope for Kids (3+)

$21.99

GeoSafari Jr. Talking Microscope for Kids (4+)

$66.43

Beginner Microscope for Kids

40X-1000X LED Illumination Lab Compound Monocular Microscope

SE306R-PZ-LED Forward-Mounted Binocular Stereo Microscope

$189.99

SE400-Z Professional Binocular Stereo Microscope

$223.99

LCD Digital Microscope

$79.99

Andonstar AD407 3D HDMI Soldering Digital Microscope

$279.99 (12% off)

Its these fractional charges that let scientists finally design the exact right experiments to shake loose the real anyons. A coin sorter is a good analogy for a lot of things, and this time is no different: scientists had to find the right series of sorting ideas in order to build one experimental setup that would, ultimately, only register the anyons. And having the unique quality of fractional charges gave them, at least, a beginning to work on those experiments.

A Quantum Leap in the Classical World

Following an April paper about using a miniature particle accelerator to notice anyons, in July, researchers from Purdue published their findings after using a microchip etched to route particles through a maze that phased out all other particles. The maze combined an interferometera device that uses waves to measure what interferes with themwith a specially designed chip that activates anyons at a state.

Purdue University

What results is a measurable phenomenon called anyonic braiding. This is surprising and good, because it confirms the particle-like anyons exhibit this particular particle behavior, and because braiding as a behavior has potential for quantum computing. Electrons also braid, but researchers werent certain the much weaker charge of anyons would exhibit the same behavior.

Braiding isnt just for electrons and anyons, either: photons do it, too. "Braiding is a topological phenomenon that has been traditionally associated with electronic devices," photon researcher Mikael Rechtsman said in October.

He continued:

Now, the quantum information toolkit includes electrons, protons, and what Discover calls these strange in-betweeners: the anyons.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io

The rest is here:

This Incredible Particle Only Arises in Two Dimensions - Popular Mechanics

Monday markedtwo years since the passage of the National Quantum Initiative, or NQI Actand in that time, federal agencies followed through on its early calls and helped lay the groundwork for new breakthroughs across the U.S. quantum realm.

Now, the sights of those helping implement the law are set on the future.

I would say in five years, something we'd love to see is ... a better idea of, What are the applications for a quantum computer thats buildable in the next fiveto 10 years, that would be beneficial to society? the Office of Science and Technology Policy Assistant Director for Quantum Information Science Dr. Charles Tahan told Nextgov in an interview Friday. He also serves as the director of the National Quantum Coordination Officea cooperation-pushing hub established by the legislation.

Tahan reflected on some foundational moves made over the last 24 months and offered a glimpse into his teams big-ticket priorities for 2021.

Quantum devices and technologies are among an ever-evolving field that hones in on phenomena at the atomic scale. Potential applications are coming to light, and are expected to radically reshape science, engineering, computing, networking, sensing, communication and more. They offer promises like unhackable internet or navigation support in places disconnected from GPS.

Federal agencies have a long history of exploring physical sciences and quantum-related pursuitsbut previous efforts were often siloed. Signed by President Donald Trump in 2018, the NQI Act sought to provide for a coordinated federal program to accelerate quantum research and development for the economic and national security of America. It assigned specific jobs for the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Energy Department and National Science Foundation, among others, and mandated new collaborations to boost the nations quantum workforce talent pipeline and strengthen societys grasp of this relatively fresh area of investment. The functions of the National Quantum Coordination Office, or NQCO, were also set forth in the bill, and it was officially instituted in early 2019. Since then, the group has helped connect an array of relevant stakeholders and facilitate new initiatives proposed by the law.

Now, everything that's been called out in the act has been establishedits started up, Tahan explained. He noted the three agencies with weighty responsibilities spent 2019 planning out their courses of action within their communities, and this year, subsequently launched weighty new efforts.

One of the latest was unveiled in August by the Energy Department, which awarded $625 million over five yearssubject to appropriationsto its Argonne, Brookhaven, Fermi, Oak Ridge and Lawrence Berkeley national laboratories to establish QIS Research Centers. In each, top thinkers will link up to push forward collaborative research spanning many disciplines. Academic and private-sector institutions also pledged to provide $340 million in contributions for the work.

These are about $25 million eachthat's a tremendous amount of students, and postdocs, and researchers, Tahan said. And those are spread out across the country, focusing on all different areas of quantum: computing, sensing and networking.

NSF this summer also revealed the formation of new Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes to tackle fundamental research hurdles in quantum information science and engineering over the next half-decade. The University of Colorado, University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign, and University of California, Berkeley are set to head and house the first three institutes, though Tahan confirmed more could be launched next year. The initiative is backed by $75 million in federal fundingand while it will take advantage of existing infrastructures, non-governmental entities involved are also making their own investments and constructing new facilities.

That's the foundation, you know, Tahan said. The teams have been formed, the research plans have been writtenthat's a tremendous amount of workand now they're off actually working. So now, we start to reap the rewards because all the heavy lifting of getting people organized has been done.

Together with NSF, OSTP also helped set in motion the National Q-12 Education Partnership. It intends to connect public, private and academic sector quantum players and cohesively create and release learning materials to help U.S. educators produce new courses to engage students with quantum fields. The work is ultimately meant to spur K-12 students' interest in the emerging areas earlier into their education, and NSF will award nearly $1 million across QIS education efforts through the work.

And beyond the governments walls and those of academia, the NQI Act also presented new opportunities for industry. Meeting the laws requirements, NIST helped convene a consortium of cross-sector stakeholders to strategically confront existing quantum-related technology, standards and workforce gaps, and needs. This year, that groupthe Quantum Economic Development Consortium, or QED-Cbloomed in size, established a more formal membership structure and announced companies that make up its steering committee.

It took a year or more to get all these companies together and then write partnership agreements. So, that partnership agreement was completed towards the beginning of summer, and the steering committee signed it over the summer, and now there are I think 100 companies or so who have signed it, Tahan said. So, it's up and running. It's a real economic development consortiumthats a technical thingand that's a big deal. And how big it is, and how fast it's growing is really, really remarkable.

This fall also brought the launch of quantum.gov, a one-stop website streamlining federal work and policies. The quantum coordination office simultaneously released a comprehensive roadmap pinpointing crucial areas of needed research, deemed the Quantum Frontiers Report.

That assessment incorporates data collected from many workshops, and prior efforts OSTP held to promote the national initiative and establishes eight frontiers that contain core problems with fundamental questions confronting QIS today and must be addressed to push forward research and development breakthroughs in the space. They include expanding opportunities for quantum technologies to benefit society, characterizing and mitigating quantum errors, and more.

It tries to cut through the hype a little bit, Tahan explained. It's a field that requires deep technical expertise. So, it's easy to be led in the wrong direction if you don't have all the data. So we try to narrow it down into here are the important problems, here's what we really don't know, heres what we do know, and go this way, and that will, hopefully benefit the whole enterprise.

Quantum-focused strides have also been made by the U.S. on the international front. Tahan pointed to the first quantum cooperation agreement signed between America and Japan late last year, which laid out basic core values guiding their working together.

We've been using that as a model to engage with other countries. We've had high-level meetings with Australia, industry collaborations with the U.K., and we're engaging with other countries. So, that's progressing, Tahan said. Many countries are interested in quantum as you can guesstheres a lot of investments around the worldand many want to work with us on going faster together.

China had also made its own notable quantum investments (some predating the NQI Act), and touted new claims of quantum supremacy, following Google, on the global stage this year.

I wouldn't frame it as a competition ... We are still very much in the research phase here, and we'll see how those things pan out, Tahan said. I think we're taking the right steps, collectively. The U.S. ecosystem of companies, nonprofits and governments arebased on our strategy, both technical and policiesgoing in the right direction and making the right investments.

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris previously put forthlegislationto broadly advance quantum research, but at this point, the Biden administration hasnt publicly shared any intentions to prioritize government-steered ongoing or future quantum efforts.

[One of] the big things we're looking towards in the next year, is workforce development. We have a critical shortage or need for talent in this space. Its a very diverse set of skills. With these new centers, just do the math. How many students and postdocs are you going to need to fill up those, to do all that research? It's a very large number, Tahan said. And so we're working on something to create that pipeline.

In that light, the team will work to continue to develop NSFs ongoing, Q-12 partnership. Theyll also reflect on whats been built so far through the national initiative to identify any crucial needs that may have been looked over.

As you stand something up thats really big, you're always going to make some mistakes. What have you missed? Tahan noted.

And going forward, the group plans to hone deeper in on balancing the economic and security implications of the burgeoning fields.

As the technology gets more and more advanced, how do we be first to realize everything but also protect our investments? Tahan said. And getting that balance right is going to require careful policy thinking about how to update the way the United States does things.

Read the original post:

Two Years into the Government's National Quantum Initiative - Nextgov

DUBLIN and PARIS, Dec. 17, 2020 Atos today announces it will deliver its first GPU-acceleratedAtos Quantum Learning Machine Enhanced(Atos QLM E), the worlds highest-performing commercially available quantum simulator, to the Irish Centre for High-End Computing (ICHEC).

The Atos QLM E will be integrated with the Irish national supercomputer Kay and equipped with a variety of quantum software programming tools. As a hybrid HPC-Quantum Computing environment, the integrated Kay-Atos QLM E platform will serve theQuantum Programming Ireland (QPI) Initiativefor conducting R&D and national-level skills development activities in quantum technologies by ICHEC as well as other Irish organizations in academic, enterprise and public sector.

Offering up to 12 times more computation speed than the original Atos QLM, the Atos QLM E is also an integral component of the NEASQC project, in the 1 bn European flagship quantum initiative, of which Ireland is a partner along with 11 other European companies and research labs, andcoordinated by Atos.

Once the Atos QLM E is delivered on-premise, Atos will provide a fast-track training program and continue to enhance the system throughout its lifetime to ensure that it delivers the functionality required in this fast-moving discipline of quantum computing.

Prof. Jean-Christophe (JC) Desplat, Director at ICHEC, said:As Irelands high performance computing authority, were committed to using the power of technology to solve some of the toughest challenges across public, academic and enterprise sectors. Working with a number of partners across Europe, we look forward to utilizing the Atos QLM E related for R&D on a number of scientific and industry-relevant quantum computing use-casesand supporting scientific breakthroughs in high-performance computing.

Agns Boudot, Senior Vice President, Head of HPC & Quantum at Atos, said:As the first Atos QLM E deployed globally, this partnership marks an important milestone in our Quantum Program. We look forward to supporting ICHEC on their quantum journey, helping them explore with their users the huge potential that quantum computing offers. The solution will provide a scalable, future-proof, national framework for the porting of hybrid applications, and for the training and skills development of Irish researchers, and ICHECs partners across Europe.

Atos QLM E has been optimized to drastically reduce the simulation time of hybrid classical-quantum algorithms simulations, leading to quicker progress in application research.

Atos, a pioneer in quantum

In 2016, Atos launched Atos Quantum an ambitiousprogram to anticipate the future of quantum computing. As a result of this initiative,Atos was the first organization to offer aquantum noise simulation modulewithin its Atos QLM offer. Atos QLM is being used in numerous countries worldwide includingAustria,Finland,France,Germany,India, Italy,Japan,the Netherlands, Senegal,UKand theUnited States, empowering major research programs in various sectors like industry orenergy. Recently, Atos introduced Q-score, the first universal quantum metrics reference, applicable to all programmable quantum processors.

Source: Atos

Read more:

Atos Delivers Its First GPU-Accelerated Quantum Learning Machine to the Irish Centre for High-End Computing - HPCwire