There's a New Quantum Computing Record: Control of a 6-Qubit Processor in Silicon

The control of a 6-qubit quantum processor in Silicon has been broken on the way to fully operational and capable quantum computers.

It's called a major stepping stone for the technology.

Qubits are similar to classical computing bits in that they can process more information. They can be in two states at the same time.

The jump to six is important because it helps us get a lot of qubits to behave as we need them to. The same material used in today's electronic devices can be used to operate them.

The quantum computing challenge today consists of two parts, according to a researcher from the Delft University of Technology. Developing qubits that are of good enough quality and an architecture that allows one to build large systems of qubits are two things that should be done.

Our work is in either category. Since the goal of building a quantum computer is enormous, we have made a contribution in the right direction.

A human hair is around 75,000 nanometers in diameter. The 'quantum dots' are placed in the same way as the transistors used in standard processors.

The team was able to control their spin thanks to careful improvements to the way the electrons were prepared, managed, and monitored.

The researchers were able to create logic gates andentangle systems with low error rates.

Microwave radiation, magnetic fields, and electric potentials were used by researchers to control and read electron spin.

In this research, we push the envelope of the number of qubits in Silicon, and achieve high initialization fidelities, high readout fidelities, high single-qubit gate fidelities, and high two-qubit state fidelities

In one single experiment on a record number of qubits, we show all these characteristics together.

Until this point, only 3-qubit processors have been successfully built in Silicon and controlled up to the necessary level of quality, so we're talking about a major step forward in terms of what's possible in this type of qubit.

Scientists are trying to figure out the best way to build qubits on superconductors, where many more qubits have been operated together.

The transition from a scientific laboratory to an actual machine should be easier because the manufacturing and supply chains are already in place. The work continues to push the record higher.

With careful engineering, it is possible to increase the Silicon spin qubit count while keeping the same precision as for single qubits.

In the next iteration of the study, the key building block developed in this research could be used to increase the number of qubits.

The research was published in a journal.