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Category: quantum physics – Page 105

High-precision quantum gates with diamond spin qubits achieve error rate below 0.1%

Researchers at QuTech, in collaboration with Fujitsu and Element Six, have demonstrated a complete set of quantum gates with error probabilities below 0.1%. While many challenges remain, being able to perform basic gate operations with errors occurring below this threshold, satisfies an important condition for future large-scale quantum computation. The research was published in Physical Review Applied on 21 March 2025.

Quantum computers are anticipated to be able to solve important problems that are beyond the capabilities of classical computers. Quantum computations are performed through a large sequence of basic operations, called .

For a quantum computer to function, it is essential that all quantum gates are highly precise. The probability of an error during the gates must be below a threshold, typically of the order 0.1 to 1%. Only then, errors are rare enough for error correction methods to work successfully and ensure reliable with noisy components.

OQTOPUS: Researchers launch open-source quantum computer operating system

The University of Osaka, Fujitsu Limited, Systems Engineering Consultants Co., LTD. (SEC), and TIS Inc. (TIS) today announced the launch of an open-source operating system (OS) for quantum computers on GitHub, in what is one of the largest open-source initiatives of its kind globally. The Open Quantum Toolchain for Operators and Users (OQTOPUS) OS can be customized to meet individual user needs and is expected to help make practical quantum computing a reality.

Until now, universities and companies seeking to make their quantum computers accessible via the cloud have had to independently develop extensive software to enable cloud-based operation. By offering this OS—covering everything from setup to operation—the research partners have lowered the barrier to deploying quantum computers in the cloud.

Additionally, quantum computing offered by the University of Osaka has begun integrating OQTOPUS into its operations and Fujitsu Limited will make it available for research partners using its quantum computers in the second half of 2025.

How Qubits Are Rewriting the Rules of Computation

For as long as we’ve been building computers, it feels like we’ve been speaking the same language — the language of bits. Think of bits as tiny switches, each stubbornly stuck in either an ‘on’ or ‘off’ position, representing the 1s and 0s that underpin everything digital. And for decades, refining these switches, making them smaller and faster, has been the name of the game. We’ve ridden the wave of Moore’s Law, achieving incredible feats of computation with this binary system. But what if, perhaps, we’ve been looking at computation in just black and white, when a whole spectrum of possibilities exists?

Bravyi, Dial, Gambetta, Gil, and Nazario from IBM Quantum in “The Future of Quantum Computing with Superconducting Qubits” say.

For the first time in history, we are seeing a branching point in computing paradigms with the emergence of quantum processing units (QPUs).

Study reveals controlled proton tunneling in water trimers

A research team led by Professor Hyung-Joon Shin from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at UNIST has succeeded in elucidating the quantum phenomenon occurring within a triangular cluster of three water molecules. The work is published in the journal Nano Letters.

Their findings demonstrate that the collective rotational motion of water molecules enhances proton tunneling, a quantum mechanical effect where protons (H+) bypass energy barriers instead of overcoming them. This phenomenon has implications for and the stability of biomolecules such as DNA.

The study reveals that when the rotational motion of water molecules is activated, the distances between the molecules adjust, resulting in increased cooperativity and facilitating proton tunneling. This process allows the three protons from the water molecules to collectively surmount the energy barrier.

Looking for elusive quantum particles? Try a bad metal, researchers suggest

Metals, as most know them, are good conductors of electricity. That’s because the countless electrons in a metal like gold or silver move more or less freely from one atom to the next, their motion impeded only by occasional collisions with defects in the material.

There are, however, metallic materials at odds with our conventional understanding of what it means to be a metal. In so-called “bad metals”—a technical term, explains Columbia physicist Dmitri Basov—electrons hit unexpected resistance: each other. Instead of the electrons behaving like individual balls bouncing about, they become correlated with one another, clumping up so that their need to move more collectively impedes the flow of an electrical current.

Bad metals may make for poor electrical conductors, but it turns out that they make good quantum materials. In work published on February 13 in the journal Science, Basov’s group unexpectedly observed unusual optical properties in the bad metal molybdenum oxide dichloride (MoOCl2).

Superconductivity fine-tuned for quantum tech by twisting novel ‘knob’

Researchers have created a tiny, shape-shifting robot that swims, crawls, and glides freely in the deep sea.

Developed by a team at the Beihang University in China, the robot operated at a depth of 10,600 meters in the Mariana Trench.

Using the same actuator technology, a soft gripper mounted on a submersible’s rigid arm successfully retrieved sea urchins and starfish from the South China Sea, demonstrating its capability for deep-sea exploration and specimen collection.

Joscha Bach: Time, Simulation Hypothesis, Existence

Joscha Bach is a cognitive scientist focusing on cognitive architectures, consciousness, models of mental representation, emotion, motivation and sociality.

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iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast… https://pdora.co/33b9lfP Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b9… Subreddit r/TheoriesOfEverything: / theoriesofeverything Merch: https://tinyurl.com/TOEmerch 0:00:00 Introduction 0:00:17 Bach’s work ethic / daily routine 0:01:35 What is your definition of truth? 0:04:41 Nature’s substratum is a “quantum graph”? 0:06:25 Mathematics as the descriptor of all language 0:13:52 Why is constructivist mathematics “real”? What’s the definition of “real”? 0:17:06 What does it mean to “exist”? Does “pi” exist? 0:20:14 The mystery of something vs. nothing. Existence is the default. 0:21:11 Bach’s model vs. the multiverse 0:26:51 Is the universe deterministic 0:28:23 What determines the initial conditions, as well as the rules? 0:30:55 What is time? Is time fundamental? 0:34:21 What’s the optimal algorithm for finding truth? 0:40:40 Are the fundamental laws of physics ultimately “simple”? 0:50:17 The relationship between art and the artist’s cost function 0:54:02 Ideas are stories, being directed by intuitions 0:58:00 Society has a minimal role in training your intuitions 0:59:24 Why does art benefit from a repressive government? 1:04:01 A market case for civil rights 1:06:40 Fascism vs communism 1:10:50 Bach’s “control / attention / reflective recall” model 1:13:32 What’s more fundamental… Consciousness or attention? 1:16:02 The Chinese Room Experiment 1:25:22 Is understanding predicated on consciousness? 1:26:22 Integrated Information Theory of consciousness (IIT) 1:30:15 Donald Hoffman’s theory of consciousness 1:32:40 Douglas Hofstadter’s “strange loop” theory of consciousness 1:34:10 Holonomic Brain theory of consciousness 1:34:42 Daniel Dennett’s theory of consciousness 1:36:57 Sensorimotor theory of consciousness (embodied cognition) 1:44:39 What is intelligence? 1:45:08 Intelligence vs. consciousness 1:46:36 Where does Free Will come into play, in Bach’s model? 1:48:46 The opposite of free will can lead to, or feel like, addiction 1:51:48 Changing your identity to effectively live forever 1:59:13 Depersonalization disorder as a result of conceiving of your “self” as illusory 2:02:25 Dealing with a fear of loss of control 2:05:00 What about heart and conscience? 2:07:28 How to test / falsify Bach’s model of consciousness 2:13:46 How has Bach’s model changed in the past few years? 2:14:41 Why Bach doesn’t practice Lucid Dreaming anymore 2:15:33 Dreams and GAN’s (a machine learning framework) 2:18:08 If dreams are for helping us learn, why don’t we consciously remember our dreams 2:19:58 Are dreams “real”? Is all of reality a dream? 2:20:39 How do you practically change your experience to be most positive / helpful? 2:23:56 What’s more important than survival? What’s worth dying for? 2:28:27 Bach’s identity 2:29:44 Is there anything objectively wrong with hating humanity? 2:30:31 Practical Platonism 2:33:00 What “God” is 2:36:24 Gods are as real as you, Bach claims 2:37:44 What “prayer” is, and why it works 2:41:06 Our society has lost its future and thus our culture 2:43:24 What does Bach disagree with Jordan Peterson about? 2:47:16 The millennials are the first generation that’s authoritarian since WW2 2:48:31 Bach’s views on the “social justice” movement 2:51:29 Universal Basic Income as an answer to social inequality, or General Artificial Intelligence? 2:57:39 Nested hierarchy of “I“s (the conflicts within ourselves) 2:59:22 In the USA, innovation is “cheating” (for the most part) 3:02:27 Activists are usually operating on false information 3:03:04 Bach’s Marxist roots and lessons to his former self 3:08:45 BONUS BIT: On societies problems.
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Subreddit r/TheoriesOfEverything: / theoriesofeverything.
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0:00:00 Introduction.
0:00:17 Bach’s work ethic / daily routine.
0:01:35 What is your definition of truth?
0:04:41 Nature’s substratum is a \.

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