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Category: quantum physics – Page 53

Quantum Fourier transform reaches 52 qubits, shattering the previous 27-qubit record

The spin-off company ParityQC has implemented the largest quantum Fourier transform ever reported using an IBM quantum computer, thereby setting a new milestone on the path toward the industrial application of quantum computers. The quantum Fourier transform is a cornerstone algorithm with applications in cryptography, financial modeling, and materials science.

Innsbruck-based quantum architecture company ParityQC performed a quantum Fourier transform using 52 superconducting qubits on an IBM Heron quantum processor. This surpasses the previous record of 27 qubits, which was set two years ago using an ion-trap quantum computer. The results were published this week on the arXiv preprint server.

“This milestone was only possible through the synergy of IBM’s latest quantum hardware and the ParityQC Architecture, which unlocked an exponential improvement in efficiency,” say Wolfgang Lechner and Magdalena Hauser, Co-CEOs of ParityQC. “What we are witnessing is European quantum innovation taking a global lead in translating theoretical potential into real-world performance.”

The Gravity Particle Should Exist. So Where Is It?

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Physics is this close to understanding the entire universe. And what lives in this gap? Many physicists think it’s the elusive graviton—the quantum particle of gravity—whose discovery will finally allow us to stitch together our two great theories of nature into a single master theory. But what is the graviton, and does it even exist?

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Stephen Hawking’s black hole information paradox could be solved — if the universe has 7 dimensions

The new research explores a universe with more dimensions than the familiar four. In this framework, the cosmos contains seven dimensions, three of which are compact and invisible at everyday scales.

“We experience three dimensions of space and one of time — four dimensions in total,” Pinčák said. “Our model proposes that the universe actually has seven dimensions: the four we know, plus three tiny extra dimensions curled up so tightly that we cannot directly perceive them.”

These extra dimensions are arranged in a highly symmetrical structure known as a G₂ geometry. This mathematical framework, often explored in advanced theories such as a version of string theory known as M-theory, determines how the hidden dimensions are “folded.”

For much of history, many mathematicians—

Following thinkers like Aristotle—viewed infinity as a never-ending process rather than a completed object. In the late 19th century, Georg Cantor revolutionized this view by treating infinite sets as mathematical objects that could be compared and studied. His work showed that not all infinities are equal, and that there are infinitely many different sizes of infinity. While his ideas are foundational in modern mathematics, some philosophical schools, such as finitism and ultrafinitism, continue to question whether infinite objects meaningfully exist.

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    • TIMESTAMPS:

    • 00:00 — Potential vs. Actual Infinity
    • 03:12 — Cardinality and Aleph-Null
    • 06:12 — Diagonalization and Uncountability
    • 09:21 — ZFC and Logical Independence
    • 12:23 — Finitism and Ultrafinitism
    • 15:26 — Continuum Hypothesis Paradoxes
    • 16:00 — Foundational Mathematical Crisis

    LINKS MENTIONED:

    In Search of Ultimate-L [paper]: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44164514

    • Emily Riehl [TOE]: • Emily Riehl Makes Infinity Categories Elem…
    • Sir Roger Penrose [TOE]: • Roger Penrose: Quantum Theory Is Wrong, No…
    • Why Write? [article]: https://curtjaimungal.substack.com/p/.…

    ASSETS USED:

    • Infinity display: • 1h Infinity Symbol Animation for Backgroun…
    • Number counter: • Count up number 1–4000 overlay for edits

    Guests do not pay to appear. #science.
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    TIMESTAMPS:
    00:00 — Potential vs. Actual Infinity.
    03:12 — Cardinality and Aleph-Null.
    06:12 — Diagonalization and Uncountability.
    09:21 — ZFC and Logical Independence.
    12:23 — Finitism and Ultrafinitism.
    15:26 — Continuum Hypothesis Paradoxes.
    16:00 — Foundational Mathematical Crisis.

    LINKS MENTIONED:
    The Most Abused Theorem in Math [TOE]: • The Most Abused Theorem in Math (Gödel’s I…
    Dror Bar Natan [TOE]: • Dror Bar Natan: Knot Theory & Quantum Fiel…
    Hilbert’s Problems: https://mathworld.wolfram.com/Hilbert…
    The Independence of the Continuum Hypothesis [paper]: https://www.pnas.org/doi/pdf/10.1073/.…
    Peano arithmetic: https://ncatlab.org/nlab/show/Peano+a…
    Cantor’s Diagonal Argument: https://www.researchgate.net/publicat…
    Hartog’s Construction: paultaylor.eu/trans/HartogsF-wellord.pdf.
    Cohen’s Forcing Method: https://timothychow.net/forcing.pdf.
    Norman Wildberger [TOE]: • Norman Wildberger: The Problem with Infini…
    Woodin’s lecture: • The Continuum Hypothesis and the search fo…
    In Search of Ultimate-L [paper]: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44164514
    Emily Riehl [TOE]: • Emily Riehl Makes Infinity Categories Elem…
    Sir Roger Penrose [TOE]: • Roger Penrose: Quantum Theory Is Wrong, No…
    Why Write? [article]: https://curtjaimungal.substack.com/p/.…

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    Continue reading “For much of history, many mathematicians—” | >

    Physicists can’t find “now” anywhere in the universe | Jim Al-Khalili

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    We would hope that the moment that we eternally live in, the “now,” would have a concrete scientific explanation. But the truth is far more complicated, says the relativity of simultaneity.

    Jim Al-Khalili explains how the past and future are more fluid than we may think.

    Preorder Jim Al-Khalili’s forthcoming book, On Time: The Physics That Makes the Universe, here: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Physics-T?tag=lifeboatfound-20…

    About Jim Al-Khalili: Jim is a multiple award-winning science communicator renowned for his public engagement around the world through writing and broadcasting and a leading academic making fundamental contributions to theoretical physics, particularly in nuclear reaction theory, quantum effects in biology, open quantum systems and the foundations of quantum mechanics. Jim is a theoretical physicist at the University of Surrey where he holds a Distinguished Chair in physics as well as a university chair in the public engagement in science. He received his PhD in nuclear reaction theory in 1989 and has published widely in the field. His current interest is in open quantum systems and the application of quantum mechanics in biology.

    About Jim Al-Khalili:

    Continue reading “Physicists can’t find “now” anywhere in the universe | Jim Al-Khalili” | >

    Superconductor Theory Under Cold-Atom Scrutiny

    Snapshot measurements of cold-atom gases reveal hidden spin correlations that could force an update of some superconductivity theories.

    Our understanding of nature is inherently bound to the experimental tools we build to observe the world. Superconductivity, for example, has been traditionally studied using current and voltage meters under a variety of temperatures and other environmental conditions. From these observations, theorists have developed models—notably the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) theory, which assumes that the zero-resistance flow in a superconductor arises from electrons forming so-called Cooper pairs. This theory has been successful in explaining a large class of superconductors, but Tarik Yefsah from the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris and colleagues have now observed behavior that contradicts BCS predictions [1]. Using a recently developed technique called atom-resolved continuum quantum gas microscopy, the researchers directly observed spatial correlations in cold atoms that mimic superconducting electrons.

    Quantum-inspired algorithm solves 268 million-site quasicrystal simulation in a heartbeat

    Quantum technologies like quantum computers are built from quantum materials. These types of materials exhibit quantum properties when exposed to the right conditions. Curiously, engineers can also trigger quantum behavior by manipulating a material’s structure; for example, by stacking layers of graphene on top of each other and twisting them to create a moiré pattern, which suddenly turns them into a superconductor.

    The layers can be arranged in increasingly complex ways all the way to quasicrystals and super-moiré materials. The fundamental problem is that scientists must first calculate the properties of potential new materials to predict if they could be useful. Quasicrystals, for example, are so complex they can require processing more than a quadrillion numbers—far beyond the capacity of the world’s most powerful supercomputers.

    Now researchers at Aalto University’s Department of Applied Physics have shown how a quantum-inspired algorithm makes solving these colossal, non-periodic quantum materials possible in a heartbeat. The research is published in the journal Physical Review Letters as an Editor’s suggestion.

    Spatiotemporal light pulses could secure optical communication by masking data

    Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have developed a new approach to secure optical communication that hides information in the physical structure of light, making it difficult for unauthorized parties to intercept or decode. The study addresses a growing challenge: advances in quantum computing are expected to weaken many of today’s encryption methods. While most security solutions rely on complex mathematical algorithms, this research adds protection earlier in the process—during the transmission of the signal itself.

    The research was led by Dr. Judith Kupferman and Prof. Shlomi Arnon from the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. The findings were published in Optical and Quantum Electronics.

    The researchers propose a communication method based on specially shaped light pulses, known as spatiotemporal optical vortices. These light beams are designed so that their key features are not visible in standard measurements.

    Quantum simulations reveal spin transport in 1D materials

    Researchers from the Department of Energy’s Quantum Science Center (QSC) headquartered at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have achieved a significant milestone by demonstrating the first digital quantum simulations of how spin currents change over time in a 1-D model of a quantum spin material. The results, now published in Physical Review Letters, establish a new, programmable way to use quantum computers to study the transport of spin—a fundamental quantum variable—in materials.

    Spin transport measurements are a cornerstone of condensed matter physics, providing important insight into how quantum materials carry energy and information. In this work, QSC researchers, led by Purdue University’s Arnab Banerjee, demonstrated how a quantum computer can simulate spin transport behavior across ballistic, diffusive, and superdiffusive—meaning a faster and farther spread than typical diffusion—motion.

    These different cases of spin transport represent fundamental changes in how the material responds to experimental probes. The simulation results make a direct comparison with experimental materials and open new avenues for understanding complex quantum phenomena such as coherence and energy flow in quantum materials.

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