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Quantum ceramics computer coming soon?
:: 13 August, 2007
After the way of the quantum diamond computers, here that is profiled at the horizon that of the quantum ceramics computers. An international team working in London Centre for Nanotechnology has just published in Science an article giving a report on discovered of an unexpected quantum order in a ceramics. A magnetic order extending on a chain from 100 atoms was thus highlighted, just what it would be necessary to be able to produce a really powerful quantum computer and under easy physical conditions.
The physics of magnetic materials is very rich and much of laboratories on planet work on physical states which one describes by glasses or liquids of spins, at the border between the order and the disorder. These are properly quantum phenomena of which some could have an important role in the comprehension and the realization of superconductors at high critical temperatures. Despite everything, to date a true state of quantum liquid of spin was still not observed in a really convincing way, even if there are good candidates.
The magnetic materials potentially have other revolutionary applications that superconductivity to ambient temperature. The quantum states of the spins of the electrons, persons in charge for the magnetic properties, can exist under two values according to whether they are parallel or ant parallel with the magnetic field in which they are. That is enough already to obtain states `0' and `1' at the base of calculation by computer. The difference with a traditional calculation is here that one deals with quantum objects and that new possibilities appear because of the principle of superposition of the states of quantum mechanics with its corollary, the intricate states.
Quantum “microcomputers” were already produced but the phenomenon of the de-coherence, destroying the desirable quantum effects, prevents until now the realization of quantum computers with more than 10 particles: a condition to fill if one wants to really exceed the performances of the existing traditional computers.
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Observations
It is by studying the ceramics based on nickel oxides using the techniques of neutron scattering to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Center for Neutron Research (the USA) and with the ISIS particle accelerator of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (GB) that the team of the LCN realized that a quantum coherence responsible for a microscopic and local magnetic order existed well in a classically disordered material and without magnetic properties. Besides they sought to obtain an image of such a hidden magnetic order, as to include/understand until which distance a quantum coherence could be maintained between a great number of spins according to the temperature and the impurities in the composition of ceramics. Indeed, the spins of the electrons in this one were to behave in a very disordered way, near to that of a true liquid of spin.
The results obtained are encouraging being given the number of atoms presenting a quantum coherence discovered. As one said, it acts of almost 100 atoms, carrying out a kind of chain on which waves of spins with swing were propagated, which could be observed. It remains still much to make but, there too, a way towards genuine powerful quantum computers was open.
Release link: http://www.nist.com
Tags: quantum computers , spin , ceramics , magnetic properties , Neutron Research , nickel oxides , quantum mechanics ,
