Lifeboat Foundation

Research often unfolds as a multistage process. The solution to one question can spark several more, inspiring scientists to reach further and look at the larger problem from several different perspectives. Such projects can often be the catalyst for collaborations that leverage the expertise and capabilities of different teams and institutions as they grow.

For half a century, scientists have delved into the mysteries of 1T phase tantalum disulfide (1T-TaS₂), an inorganic layered material with some intriguing quantum properties, like superconductivity and charge density waves (CDW). To unlock the complex structure and behavior of this material, researchers from the Jozef Stefan Institute in Slovenia and Université Paris-Saclay in France reached out to experts utilizing the Pair Distribution Function (PDF) beamline at the National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II), a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science User Facility located at DOE’s Brookhaven National Laboratory, to learn more about the material’s structure. While the team in Slovenia had been studying these kinds of materials for decades, they were lacking the specific structural characterization that PDF could provide.

The results of this collaboration, recently published in Nature Communications, revealed a hidden electronic state that could only be seen by a local structure probe like the pair distribution function technique. With a more complete understanding of 1T-TaS₂’s electronic states, this material may one day play a role in data storage, quantum computing, and superconductivity.

In the race to develop powerful quantum computers, one of the biggest roadblocks has been their extreme sensitivity to errors introduced by environmental noise. Even the smallest disturbance can corrupt the delicate quantum states that form the basis of quantum computation.

Now the AWS Center for Quantum Computing team says they may have discovered a promising solution to this hurdle. The researchers report in a blog post that they have designed and demonstrated a new type of quantum bit, or qubit, that converts the majority of errors into a special class known as “erasure errors” – and these errors can be detected and fixed much more efficiently than standard quantum errors.

The team writes: “Quantum error correction is a powerful tool for combating the effects of noise. As with error correction in classical systems, quantum error correction can exponentially suppress the rate of errors by encoding information redundantly. Redundancy protects against noise, but it comes at a price: an increase in the number of physical quantum bits (qubits) used for computation, and an increase in the complexity and duration of computations.”

Researchers at HZDR managed to generate wave-like excitations in a magnetic disk – so-called magnons – to specifically manipulate atomic-sized qubits in silicon carbide. This could open new possibilities for the transduction of information within quantum networks. Credit: HZDR / Mauricio Bejarano.

Researchers at HZDR have developed a new method to transduce quantum information using magnons, offering a promising approach to overcoming the challenges in quantum computing, particularly in enhancing qubit stability and communication efficiency.

Quantum computers promise to tackle some of the most challenging problems facing humanity today. While much attention has been directed towards the computation of quantum information, the transduction of information within quantum networks is equally crucial in materializing the potential of this new technology.

Researchers from Tohoku University have created a theoretical framework for an advanced spin wave reservoir computing (RC) system that leverages spintronics. This innovation advances the field toward realizing energy-efficient, nanoscale computing with unparalleled computational power.

Details of their findings were published in npj Spintronics on March 1, 2024.

A recent study by scientists from the University of California, Irvine and Los Alamos National Laboratory, published in Nature Communications, reveals a breakthrough method for transforming everyday materials, such as glass, into materials scientists can use to make quantum computers.

“The materials we made are substances that exhibit unique electrical or quantum properties because of their specific atomic shapes or structures,” said Luis A. Jauregui, professor of physics & astronomy at UCI and lead author of the new paper. “Imagine if we could transform glass, typically considered an insulating material, and convert it into efficient conductors akin to copper. That’s what we’ve done.”

Conventional computers use silicon as a conductor, but silicon has limits. Quantum computers stand to help bypass these limits, and methods like those described in the new study will help quantum computers become an everyday reality.

As CHIP is better understood, its cardiovascular and oncological risks are more clearly defined, along with what to do about them, say experts.

The case for teaching coders to speak French.

By Ian Bogost

The massive CHIPS investment will support Intel’s construction and expansion projects across four states and is also likely to create nearly 30,000 jobs.

Elon Musk’s Neuralink introduced the first patient to receive its brain-computer implant, demonstrating during a livestream that he can now move a computer cursor to play chess using the device. Photo: Neuralink.

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