A new method for quantum computing
QuSoft and IoP researchers propose a new method for quantum computing in trapped ions

Date:
January 31, 2022
Source:
Universiteit van Amsterdam
Summary:
Physicists have proposed a new architecture for a scalable quantum
computer. Making use of the collective motion of the constituent
particles, they were able to construct new building blocks for
quantum computing that pose fewer technical difficulties than
current state-of- the art methods.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Physicists from the University of Amsterdam have proposed a new
architecture for a scalable quantum computer. Making use of the
collective motion of the constituent particles, they were able to
construct new building blocks for quantum computing that pose fewer
technical difficulties than current state-of- the art methods. The
results were recently published in Physical Review Letters.


==========================================================================
The researchers work at QuSoft and the Institute of Physics in the groups
of Rene Gerritsma and Arghavan Safavi-Naini. The effort, which was led by
the PhD candidate Matteo Mazzanti, combines two important ingredients. One
is a so- called trapped-ion platform, one of the most promising candidates
for quantum computing that makes use of ions -- atoms that have either
a surplus or a shortage of electrons and as a result are electrically
charged. The other is the use of a clever method to control the ions
supplied by optical tweezers and oscillating electric fields.

As the name suggests, trapped-ion quantum computers use a crystal of
trapped ions. These ions can move individually, but more importantly,
also as a whole.

As it turns out, the possible collective motions of the ions facilitate
the interactions between individual pairs of ions. In the proposal, this
idea is made concrete by applying a uniform electric field to the whole crystal, in order to mediate interactions between two specific ions in
that crystal. The two ions are selected by applying tweezer potentials on
them -- see the image above. The homogeneity of the electric field assures
that it will only allow the two ions to move together with all other
ions in the crystal. As a result, the interaction strength between the
two selected ions is fixed, regardless of how far apart the two ions are.

A quantum computer consists of 'gates', small computational building
blocks that perform quantum analogues of operations like 'and' and
'or' that we know from ordinary computers. In trapped-ion quantum
computers, these gates act on the ions, and their operation depends on
the interactions between these particles. In the above setup, the fact
that those interactions do not depend on the distance means that also
the duration of operation of a gate is independent of that distance. As
a result, this scheme for quantum computing is inherently scalable,
and compared to other state-of-the-art quantum computing schemes poses
fewer technical challenges for achieving comparably well- operating
quantum computers.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Universiteit_van_Amsterdam. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Related Multimedia:
* Two_trapped_ions_selected_by_optical_tweezers ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. M. Mazzanti, R. X. Schu"ssler, J. D. Arias Espinoza,
Z. Wu,
R. Gerritsma, A. Safavi-Naini. Trapped Ion Quantum Computing Using
Optical Tweezers and Electric Fields. Physical Review Letters,
2021; 127 (26) DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.127.260502 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220131110459.htm

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