Researchers behind the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) want to gather computer scientists engineers and physicists to define the challenge of “encoding imperfect physical qubits into a logical qubit that protects against gate errors and damaging environmental influences.”
A quantum bit or qubit or quantum bit in the quantum computing realm usesqubitsinstead of the usual bits representing 1s or 0s. Ultimately quantum computing efforts should result in super-fast, super secure computers the experts say. [For a good article on why quantum computing can be so damn confusing and why its development is critical, go here.]
+More on Network World: Intelligence agency wants a superconducting, super cool, supercomputer+
According to IARPA, quantum information processing has witnessed tremendous advances in high-fidelity qubit operations and an increase in the size and complexity of controlled quantum computing systems, “it still suffers from physical-qubit gate and measurement fidelities that fall short of desired thresholds, multi-qubit systems whose overall performance is inferior to that of isolated qubits, and non-extensible architectures—all of which hinder their path toward fault-tolerance.”
That’s why a program IARPA will detail next month called LogiQ, will build a logical qubit from physical qubits and push for higher fidelity in multi-qubit operations which it hopes will develop vigorous quantum processors.
+More on Network World: US intelligence group wants to reverse-engineer human brain algorithms+
“In order to capture the full range of issues that impact the development of a larger quantum processor, it is important to focus on improving all of these aspects concurrently. Moreover, it is essential to develop relevant error budgets and statistics that can robustly estimate system performance from isolated performance metrics,” IARPA stated.
In trying to define LogiQ, IARPA listed a number of challenges the program will address. Among them LogiQ aims to:
- Experimentally address the true complexity and requirements for encoding quantum information into a logical subspace;
- Ascertain the complete error environment in a system of over ten connected physical qubits;
- Characterize temporal and spatial correlations affecting system performance;
- Choreograph and optimize open loop control of individual qubits throughout gate operations;
- Implement the closed loop feedback needed to compensate for errors and determine the required level of synchronicity and operational scheduling;
- Characterize crosstalk and determine the level of mitigation required for high- fidelity logical-qubit operations;
- Establish the logical-qubit requirements of classical control infrastructure, latencies, speed and fidelity of measurement, etc.;
- Develop classical controllers and measurement devices to manipulate physical qubits appropriate for logical-qubit processing;
- Include extensibility in the logical qubit design to provide flexibility for future, more complex systems.
IARPA will host a Proposers' Day on May 19 at the University of Maryland Stamp Student Union if you are interested. For more details look here.
Check out these other hot stories:
IBM unbolts vast threat database to fight cybercrimes
Yikes: 10,000 IRS impersonation scam calls are placed every week
Transition to IP network creates cybersecurity challenges for FAA
US Navy researchers get drones to swarm on target
The International Space Station (finally!) gets an espresso machine
FBI: Be suspicious about Web searches for federal information