Microsoft recently revealed Majorana 1the first quantum chip of its kind, which opens the door to the so -called topological quantum computers and puts the Redmond company at the forefront in the field of quantum computing. This processor, as big as the palm of one handis the first in the world to exploit topological qubit (8 to be precise), a new class of quibit that promises to overcome one of the main limits of traditional quantum computers: fragility and the need for sophisticated errors correction systems. Thanks to the use of Majorana’s quasi-particlesquantum excitations similar to particles theorized by the body Ettore Majorana In 1937, the Redmond giant created an architecture capable of climb up to 1 million quibitan unthinkable quantity for current quantum computers based on conventional quibit. Its stability could accelerate the practical adoption of quantum computation, bringing concrete applications to sectors such as chemistry, material science and artificial intelligence. But how exactly Majorana 1 works? And why do the topological quibits represent an epochal turning point?
How the Majorana 1 chip works: topological quibits and the difference with other chips for quantum computing
To understand the value of this innovation, it is useful to review the concept of quibit and the functioning of quantum computers. Unlike “classic” computers, which use bite bits (0 And 1), quantum computers are based on quibitunit of information that can exist in multiple states at the same time thanks to a phenomenon called quantum overlap. In this way, using particular quantum properties that occur on the scale of subatomic particles but not on the macroscopic scale, a quantum bit can also take intermediate values between 0 and 1. This allows you to perform extremely complex calculations in parallel, providing a calculation power Potentially higher than that of any classic supercomputer, opening the door to potentially revolutionary applications.
Traditional quibits, however, are notoriously unstable: in order to codify a quibit, quantum systems placed in conditions are anything but spontaneous, and therefore even very small environmental interferences can alter and compromise calculations. To maintain the reliability of the system, current quantum computers need a huge number of quibit support for errors correction. For example, in some recent processors, 280 physical quibits were needed to obtain 48 qubits that can be used.
And it is here that Majorana 1 makes the difference. Microsoft developed a particular type of quibitcalled precisely topological qubitwho are intrinsically more stable and less subject to errors. As the name vaguely suggests, a topological quibit codifies information not so much through the quantum state of a particle, but through the correlations between the quantum states of a large number of particles that interact on the surface of a microscopic superconductor.
Topological qubits store quantum information in a way to resist a lot to external disturbances, precisely because the information is distributed in an entire quantum system rather than on a single particle or a single atom. In the case of the Majorana 1 chip, this is obtained through particular particular quantum excitations called Majorana’s quasi-particleswho “appear” similarly to the particles of Majorana, particles theorized by the Italian physicist who coincide with their own antiparticle. Beyond the physical details, which are very complex, the point is that these almost-particles result from collective properties of a quantum system and not by the quantum state of a single particle subject to enormous instability. In other words, The topological qubit is protected from errors thanks to its own physical structurewhich eliminates the need for complex correction systems.
Microsoft has created the Majorana 1 processor using a structure called top and topoconductora system consisting of a dwarf of semiconductor material (in this case arseniuro di inio) very close to a superconductor material containing aluminum. In the right conditions (a specific magnetic field and a temperature close to absolute zero), the semiconductor nano-phile also becomes a superconductor and this allows the emergence of Majorana’s quasi-particles capable of constituting a topological quibit.
The chip presented contains just 8 quibits, but it is effectively scalable: its architecture allows you to increase the quibit number without enlarged the chip. So much so that we talk about a perspective of 1 million Qubit in a single chipwhile the current quantum computers occupy entire rooms to reach only a few dozen functioning logical quibits.
The possible applications of Majorana 1
A quantum computer with 1 million qubit could revolutionize entire sectorsbetween here those mentioned below.
- Chemistry and material science: Design of new self-relevant materials for buildings and electronic devices.
- Environmental sustainability: Development of catalysts for the decomposition of microplastics and ecological alternatives to polluting materials.
- Agriculture and biotechnology: Enzyme optimization to improve soil fertility and crop yield.
- Artificial intelligence: Improvement of Machine Learning algorithms through advanced simulations impossible for current supercomputer.
Regarding the usefulness of such a system, Microsoft commented:
All computers currently operational in the world, put together, cannot do what a quantum computer from one million qubit will be able to do. This means that everything that today requires years of large experiments and resources could be resolved quickly and efficiently thanks to the power of quantum computing.
After 17 long years of researchMicrosoft has finally presented a processor that could make quantum computation truly practical and scalable. The project was validated by a publication on the prestigious magazine Nature and received the attention of the Darp (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), which selected it for the final phase of a program – called US2QC – aimed at creating a quantum computer tolerant of errors.
