Quantum Computing is in another dimension from traditional computing, entering the world of three-dimensionality. It involves height, width, and now depth.
What is Quantum Computing?
Quantum computers capture the deepest phenomena of quantum mechanics which brings computing to another level. It outstrips the processing power of traditional computers and in the foreseeable future will be more complex than today’s supercomputers.
But keep in mind that Quantum computers will never replace traditional computers because traditional computers solve complex problems much easier than quantum computers will.
Quantum Computer Technology
Quantum computing is very much in vogue today and companies are using them to develop new technologies. They will bring much-needed advances in pharmaceutical research and produce novel drugs that may help cure diseases and sicknesses that cannot be cured by current medication. Also, companies have used quantum computers to develop lighter and more powerful batteries for electric cars.
Qubits Anyone?
Unlike traditional computers which process electrical impulses known as 0’s and 1’s, Quantum computers utilize qubits which are subatomic particles like electrons or photons. Electrons are negatively charged particles while photons are neutral particles that travel at the speed of light. Yes, we brought you back to high school there.
Controlling Qubits
Qubits are a challenge to harness and major technology companies use two ways to harness them. Some use superconducting circuits cooled to deep space temperatures to capture qubits.
Other companies harness individual atoms in electromagnetic fields on silicon chips in high vacuum chambers. The end result is that both processes stabilize qubits.
The goal, in either case, is to separate the qubits into a controlled quantum state. Once this is achieved, the qubits can be used in quantum computers to calculate complex problems.
Qubits have unusual Properties
Qubits have strange properties that allow a connected group of them to generate way more processing power than traditional electrical impulses can.
Superposition and Entanglement
Qubits can represent numerous combinations of 1’s and 0’s at the same time. This allows them to be in multiple states. This is known as superposition.
Researchers use precision lasers or microwave beams to put them into this state.
Thanks to superposition, quantum computers can calculate vast numbers of potential outcomes at the same time. Once the qubit is measured it reaches its final state and collapses into 1’s and 0’s.
Entanglement is when two qubits are entangled together and exist in a single quantum state. If one qubit is changed the other qubit will change simultaneously, always in a predictable way, even if they are separated by extremely long distances.
It’s not known exactly how entanglement works, but it works. Entanglement is the key to the quantum computer’s power potential. Adding qubits to a quantum computer will exponentially increase the computer's ability to crunch numbers.
Final Outcome
Quantum computers are exponentially more powerful than traditional computers and they are being used in pharmaceutical research to develop new drugs. They are also being used to develop lighter but more powerful batteries for electric cars.
The two dynamics that make quantum computing possible are superposition and entanglement.