FlexBeta

The Phosphorous Atom Quantum Computing Machine

Posted by Gsurface on May 22, 2013 No comments

An Australian team unveils the fundamental building block of a scalable quantum computer that could be embedded in today’s silicon chips

Back in the late 90s, a physicist in Australia put forward a design for a quantum computer. Bruce Kane suggested that phosphorus atoms embedded in silicon would be the ideal way to store and manipulate quantum information.

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SlashGear

Google and NASA buy D-Wave quantum computer

Posted by Gsurface on May 16, 2013 No comments

Google will co-invest in a quantum supercomputer lab near its Mountain View campus, exploring the potential for incredibly-fast processing tipped to run 11,000x faster at some tasks compared to a standard Intel chip. The computer itself will be manufactured by D-Wave and based at NASA‘s Ames Research Center, where the Universities Space Research Association nonprofit

Google and NASA Launch Quantum Computing AI Lab

Posted by Gsurface on May 16, 2013 No comments

The Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab will use the most advanced commercially available quantum computer, the D-Wave Two.

Quantum computing took a giant leap forward on the world stage today as NASA and Google, in partnership with a consortium of universities, launched an initiative to investigate how the technology might lead to breakthroughs in artificial intelligence.

First Quantum Memory That Records The Shape of a Single Photon Unveiled in China

Posted by Gsurface on May 15, 2013 No comments

The world’s first quantum memory that stores the shape and structure of single photons has been built in a Chinese lab

D-Wave’s Quantum Computer Goes to the Races, Wins

Posted by Gsurface on May 11, 2013 No comments

Tests suggest that a CIA-backed quantum computing technology can be very powerful for some kinds of problems.

When I visited D-Wave last year I saw some spectacular hardware and heard of significant backing for the company (see “The CIA and Jeff Bezos Bet On Quantum Computing”). But no one was able to show me results from pitting one of D-Wave’s unusual computers directly against a conventional one to prove how much faster they could be.

Quantum network secretly running for 2 years

Posted by Gsurface on May 9, 2013 No comments

A national laboratory has been running a quantum network that could make perfectly secure Internet communications a reality

FOX News

Startup Taps Quantum Encryption for Cybersecurity

Posted by Gsurface on May 7, 2013 No comments

GridCom Technologies says quantum cryptography can work to make the electricity grid control systems secure.

The notion of harnessing the physics of quantum mechanics for a massive leap in computing power is firmly in the realm of science. But many people believe that applying these techniques to secure commercial communications is far more feasible.

Government Lab Reveals Quantum Internet Operated Continuously For Over Two Years

Posted by Gsurface on May 6, 2013 No comments

A quantum internet capable of sending perfectly secure messages has been running at Los Alamos National Labs for the last two and a half years, say researchers

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SlashGear

Loophole in spooky quantum entanglement theory closed

Posted by Gsurface on April 22, 2013 No comments

The weird way entangled particles stay connected even when separated by large distances a phenomenon Albert Einstein called “spooky” has been confirmed once again, this time with a key loophole in the experiment eliminated
FOX News

‘Star Trek’ inspires BlackBerry founder, launches quantum fund

Posted by Gsurface on March 20, 2013 No comments

Known for his long-standing interest in quantum technology, Mike Lazaridis creates a $ 100 million investment fund aimed at bringing science breakthroughs to the commercial world. [Read more]

CNET News

ZTE Quantum smartphone surfaces with 13MP camera and 5-inch display

Posted by Gsurface on March 20, 2013 No comments

Our friends over at Android Police surfaced a leak of ZTE‘s Quantum smartphone, which is destined for Sprint. The handset is shown as being the N8910 model, and while it isn’t the highest end handset out there, the specs certainly make this smartphone worth checking out. You can check out some pictures of the phone

Defeating cyber-attacks with quantum cryptography

Posted by Gsurface on March 4, 2013 No comments

Using quantum cryptography, Los Alamos National Laboratory has developed a method to detect and defeat an adversary intent on intercepting or attacking power grid communications.

FOX News

Quantum Dots Get Commercial Debut in More Colorful Sony TVs

Posted by Gsurface on January 11, 2013 No comments

Technology from QD Vision replaces the conventional backlight in LCDs, allowing for purer colors.

Sony is using nanoscale particles called quantum dots to significantly improve the color of some of its high-end Bravia televisions. It showed off the technology, which increases the range of colors that an LCD television can display by about 50 percent, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week. This marks the first time that quantum dots—which for a long time have fascinated researchers because of their unusual electronic and optical properties—have been used in a mass-produced consumer electronics product.

Poll Reveals Quantum Physicists’ Disagreement About the Nature of Reality

Posted by Gsurface on January 11, 2013 No comments

A survey of leading thinkers shows that they are as far as ever from agreeing on the nature of reality

Quantum Gas Goes Below Absolute Zero

Posted by Gsurface on January 4, 2013 No comments

First time accepted submitter mromanuk writes in with a story about scientists at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich who have created an atomic gas that goes below absolute zero. “It may sound less likely than hell freezing over, but physicists have created an atomic gas with a sub-absolute-zero temperature for the first time. Their technique opens the door to generating negative-Kelvin materials and new quantum devices, and it could even help to solve a cosmological mystery.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Investors Bet Quantum Technology Will Make the Internet Faster and More Secure

Posted by Gsurface on December 27, 2012 No comments

Quantum computing is a distant prospect but techniques to improve broadband and encryption are closer to market

Security and speed—two challenges facing the Internet that most Web users will feel familiar with. The partners of a new venture capital fund are betting that they will be solved by applying quantum physics.

MIT Research Shows New Magnetic State That Could Aid Quantum Computing

Posted by Gsurface on December 21, 2012 No comments

alphadogg writes “Researchers at MIT and other institutions have demonstrated a new type of magnetism, only the third kind ever found, and it may find its way into future communications, computing and data storage technologies. Working with a tiny crystal of a rare mineral that took 10 months to make, the researchers for the first time have demonstrated a magnetic state called a QSL (quantum spin liquid), according to MIT physics professor Young Lee. He is the lead author of a paper on their findings, which is set to be published in the journal Nature this week. Theorists had said QSLs might exist, but one had never been demonstrated before. ‘We think it’s pretty important,’ Lee said, adding that he would let his peers be the ultimate judges.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

MIT research shows new magnetic state that could aid quantum computing

Posted by Gsurface on December 19, 2012 No comments

Researchers at MIT and other institutions have demonstrated a new type of magnetism, only the third kind ever found, and it may find its way into future communications, computing and data storage technologies.
Computerworld News

Quantum Imaging Technique Heralds Unjammable Aircraft Detection

Posted by Gsurface on December 14, 2012 No comments

Physicists have exploited the quantum properties of photons to create the first imaging system that is unjammable

Scientists Race To Establish the First Links of a ‘Quantum Internet’

Posted by Gsurface on December 5, 2012 No comments

ananyo writes “Two teams of researchers — once rivals, now collaborators — are racing to use the powers of subatomic physics to create a super-secure global communication network. The teams — one led by Jian-Wei Pan at the University of Science and Technology of China, the other by his former PhD supervisor Anton Zeilinger of the University of Vienna — have spent the last 7 years beating each other’s distance records for long-distance quantum-teleportation. They now plan to create the first intercontinental quantum-secured network, connecting Asia to Europe by satellite.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Notch Expands On 0x10c, Microsoft and Quantum Computing

Posted by Gsurface on November 29, 2012 No comments

eldavojohn writes “Mojang’s Marcus Persson (better known as ‘Notch’) has answered quite a few questions in an interview with PC Gamer about his new game 0x10c. Since its announcement, there’s been very few details about game play aside from the DCPU-16 and art tests. But in this interview, Notch has revealed quite a bit about how the game will function and non-final ideas he has for either a monthly fee to play in a ‘multiverse’ or micropayments. He talks about a custom OS people are working on to load into the game’s CPU as well as a an in-game 3D printer that will allow you to make virtual objects. When asked about Kickstarter and his Oculus dev kit, Notch said ‘Definitely going to make it work in 0x10c no matter what’ and his account of using the Oculus Rift sounds more than promising for the VR Device. When asked about Linux he said, ‘[Linux] is wonderful. I think we need to have it, and it’s a shame that more people, including myself, don’t use it. It’s gotten easier and friendlier.’ When asked about Microsoft he said, ‘I use their OS – Windows 7 is an amazing operating system in my opinion and of course there’s the Xbox, which I love. I’m sure Bing is going to take off and save them. [Editor's note: Notch is smiling mischievously as he says this.]‘”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Continue reading Alt-week 11.24.12: new galaxies, quantum foam and 3D printed game controllers

Alt-week 11.24.12: new galaxies, quantum foam and 3D printed game controllers

Posted by Gsurface on November 24, 2012 No comments

Alt-week takes a look at the best science and alternative tech stories from the last seven days.

This week, it’s all about the hard stuff. Science, that is. Whatever you were thinking of, forget it. Anyhoo, NASA has learned how to get space itself to its own damn exploration, quantum foam might be proven with a fridge and a laser, self-filling water bottles could be in our future and we could see 3D printed Xbox controllers in our lifetime. This, friends, is alt-week.

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Engadget

Quantum cryptography keys ride the lightning on existing fiber lines

Posted by Gsurface on November 21, 2012 No comments

Quantum computing has teased us with its potential for some time, but we won’t be seeing qubits in our laptops anytime soon. However, science has also sought to leverage quantum physics in cryptography, and a recent breakthrough will allow for quantum encryption over fiber optic cables already in use. Researchers from Toshiba and Cambridge University discovered that they could transmit and receive encryption keys using pulses of quantum light and a specialized photodetector.

The trick was to build a detector with a gate capable of both sensing a single photon and opening for just one tenth of one billionth of a second at the precise time that the photon arrives. Knowing the timing of the photon’s arrival with such precision allows the quantum light to be captured and filtered out from other light pulses carrying regular data in the cable. Why all the effort to use quantum light? Well, if any quantum photon carrying an encryption key is intercepted during transmission, it’s permanently changed. This, in turn, alerts those intended to receive the info that the encryption key may have been compromised.

Previously, quantum encryption keys could be exchanged, but only if sent using a dedicated fiber line, which isn’t a cost-effective solution. This new method allows keys to be sent via existing lines already in operation transmitting data, so no dedicated fiber need be installed. In testing, simultaneous 1 Mbps quantum key data rates and 1 Gbps regular data rates were achieved, and one researcher told BBC News that the technology is “not too far away” from being used to secure financial networks. For now, the new quantum key distribution method remains in the lab, but you can read all about it at the source below.

Filed under: Science, Alt

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Via: BBC News

Source: Physical Review X

Engadget

Quantum Cryptography Conquers Noise Problem

Posted by Gsurface on November 21, 2012 No comments

ananyo writes “Quantum-encryption systems that encode signals into a series of single photons have so far been unable to piggyback on existing telecommunications lines because they don’t stand out from the millions of others in an optical fiber. But now, physicists using a technique for detecting dim light signals have transmitted a quantum key along 90 kilometers of noisy optical fiber. The feat could see quantum cryptography finally enter the mainstream. The researchers developed a detector that picks out photons only if they strike it at a precise instant, calculated on the basis of when the encoded photons were sent. The team’s ‘self-differentiating’ detector activates for 100 picoseconds, every nanosecond. The weak charge triggered by a photon strike in this short interval would not normally stand out, but the detector measures the difference between the signal recorded during one operational cycle and the signal from the preceding cycle — when no matching photon was likely to be detected. This cancels out the background hum. Using this device, the team has transmitted a quantum key along a 90-kilometer fiber, which also carried noisy data at 1 billion bits per second in both directions — a rate typical of a telecommunications fiber.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

How to Measure Quantum Foam With a Tabletop Experiment

Posted by Gsurface on November 20, 2012 No comments

Physicists thought they could never measure the foam-like structure of spacetime. Now one theoretical physicist says it can be done using a laser and a block of glass

Europe Proposes Cheap Quantum Optics Link to the Space Station

Posted by Gsurface on November 13, 2012 No comments

The ability to send entangled photons to the ISS would be a stepping stone to a global quantum internet and could test the link between quantum mechanics and relativity

ISS quantum plan

Quantum Dots Make Artificial Photosynthesis Last Longer

Posted by Gsurface on November 8, 2012 No comments

Nanoparticles offer a solution to a key problem with splitting water with sunlight to generate hydrogen.

Entanglement Makes Quantum Batteries Almost Perfect, Say Physicists

Posted by Gsurface on November 8, 2012 No comments

In theory, quantum batteries such as atoms and molecules can store and release energy on demand almost perfectly–provided they are entangled, says physicists

The CIA and Jeff Bezos Bet on Quantum Computing

Posted by Gsurface on October 4, 2012 No comments

With funding from the Amazon founder and the CIA’s investment arm, the Canadian company D-Wave is gaining momentum for its revolutionary approach to computing.

Inside a blocky building in a Vancouver suburb, across the street from a dowdy McDonald’s, is a place chilled colder than anywhere in the natural universe. Inside that is a computer processor that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and the CIA’s investment arm, In-Q-Tel, believe can tap the quirks of quantum mechanics to unleash more computing power than any conventional computer chip. Bezos and In-Q-Tel are in a group of investors who are betting $ 30 million on this prospect.

Continue reading Alt-week 9.22.12: Quantum Scotch tape, moving walls and scientific beer

Alt-week 9.22.12: Quantum Scotch tape, moving walls and scientific beer

Posted by Gsurface on September 22, 2012 No comments

Alt-week peels back the covers on some of the more curious sci-tech stories from the last seven days.

Sometimes, here at alt.engadget.com, we’re literally on the bleeding edge of technology. We get to explore concepts and ideas that are almost nebular in nature. Not this week though, where there’s a distinct utilitarian aroma in the air. The glittery overcoat of future science is replaced by the rolled-up sleeves of good old-fashioned engineering. A bit of sticky tape, a proof of concept omnidirectional bike and a hardware matrix wall. After all that, you’ll probably want a beer to wash it down with. Fortunately for you, it’s all here. This is alt-week.

Filed under: Science, Internet, Alt

Alt-week 9.22.12: Quantum Scotch tape, moving walls and scientific beer originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 22 Sep 2012 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget

Researchers create working quantum bit in silicon, pave way for PCs of the future

Posted by Gsurface on September 21, 2012 No comments

If you’ve been paying attention, you know the quantum computing revolution is coming — and so far the world has a mini quantum network, not to mention the $ 10,000 D-Wave One, to show for it. Researchers from the University of Melbourne and University College, London, have now developed the “first working quantum bit based on a single atom of silicon.” By measuring and manipulating the magnetic orientation, or spin, of an electron bound to a phosphorus atom embedded in a silicon chip, the scientists were able to both read and write information, forming a qubit, the basic unit of data for quantum computing.

The team used a silicon transistor, which detects the electron’s spin and captures its energy when the spin’s direction is “up.” Once the electron is in the transistor, scientists can change its spin state any way they choose, effectively “writing” information and giving them control of the quantum bit. The next step will be combing two quibits into a logic step, with the ultimate goal being a full-fledged quantum computer capable of crunching numbers, cracking encryption codes and modeling molecules that would put even supercomputers to shame. But, you know, baby steps.

Filed under: Science, Alt

Researchers create working quantum bit in silicon, pave way for PCs of the future originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Sep 2012 00:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget

Researchers Create Silicon-Based Quantum Bit

Posted by Gsurface on September 20, 2012 No comments

angry tapir writes “Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia have created the world’s first working quantum bit based on a single atom in silicon. The research team was able to both read and write information using the spin, or magnetic orientation, of an electron bound to a single phosphorous atom embedded in a silicon chip. In February, UNSW researchers revealed they had successfully created a single-atom transistor using a single phosphorous atom in a silicon crystal.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Solid State Quantum Computer Finds 15=3×5 — 48% of the Time

Posted by Gsurface on August 26, 2012 No comments

mikejuk writes “The Shor quantum factoring algorithm has been run for the first time on a solid state device and it successfully factored a composite number. A team from UCSB has managed to build and operate a quantum circuit composed of four superconducting phase qubits. The design creates entangled bits faster than before and the team verified that entanglement was happening using quantum tomography. The final part of the experiment implemented the Shor factoring algorithm using 15 as the value to be factored. In 150,000 runs of the calculation, the chip gave the correct result 48% of the time. As Shor’s algorithm is only supposed to give the correct answer 50% of the time, this is a good result but not of practical use.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Scientists create first quantum router, but don’t throw your 802.11ac out yet

Posted by Gsurface on August 5, 2012 No comments

A common vision of the future has us with our feet up, while robots do all the work. Another one sees the end of silicon, with quantum computers doing all the heavy lifting. That second prophecy inches just a smidgen closer with the news of the world’s first quantum router. Developed at Tsinghau University in China, the router makes a quantum photon from two separate photons in different polarized states. At this point, things start to get a little, well, mind-bending, as they are wont to do in the quantum world. The net result, however, is one qubit of data being “routed” at a time. While this won’t be powering any serious networks anytime soon, the all important proof of concept is there, and we imagine, in a parallel universe simultaneously.

Filed under: Science

Scientists create first quantum router, but don’t throw your 802.11ac out yet originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Aug 2012 08:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget

Physicists Demonstrate Quantum Router

Posted by Gsurface on August 3, 2012 No comments

Diggester tips news that physicists from Tsinghua University in China have published “the first proof-of-principle demonstration of a genuine quantum router.” The group’s paper (PDF) is available at the arXiv. MIT’s Technology Review describes it thus:
“In this new device, the information is encoded in the polarization of photons, either horizontal or vertical. The Chinese group begin by creating a single photon that is in a superposition of both horizontal and vertical polarization states. They then convert this single photon into a pair of lower energy photons that are entangled, a process called parametric down conversion. Both of these photons are also in a superposition of polarization states. The router works by using the polarization of one of these photons as the control signal to determine the route of the other, the data signal. The device is simple, little more than a collection of half mirrors for guiding photons and waveplates for rotating their polarization.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

First Demonstration of A Quantum Router

Posted by Gsurface on August 3, 2012 No comments

Chinese physicists unveil a router that uses a quantum control signal to determine the path of a quantum data signal

Physicists have exploited the quantum nature of photons to transmit information for some time now. And in doing so they’ve discovered just how powerful quantum communication can be compared to the classical kind.

Quantum Dots Give Notebooks a New Glow

Posted by Gsurface on August 1, 2012 No comments

Startup Nanosys says quantum dots will brighten displays in consumer electronics starting next year.

A layer of nanomaterial that gives a liquid-crystal display the rich range of colors usually possible only with more expensive technologies will be commercialized later this year by the materials giant 3M and Nanosys, a private company in Palo Alto, California. Nanosys representatives say they are in talks with major display manufacturers to adopt the quantum-dot films, and that they will be in a 15.6-inch notebook computer available next year.

Imaging The Quantum Motion of Electrons Using Light

Posted by Gsurface on July 25, 2012 No comments

Physicists say they’ve worked out how to video the quantum motion of an electron as it moves around a hydrogen atom, a step that has important implications for our understanding of biomolecules

For decades, physicists have studied the way an electron ought to bind to a proton, the simplest atomic system. The fascinating patterns of hydrogen orbitals that form at different energy levels are static objects, calculated by detailed computer modelling. They are snapshots of hydrogen atoms frozen in time.

Super Physics Smackdown: Relativity v Quantum Mechanics…In Space

Posted by Gsurface on June 25, 2012 No comments

The only way to study the conflict between relativity and quantum mechanics is to test them over enormous distances in space. And physicists are already making plans

One of the great puzzles of modern science is that the laws that govern the universe on the largest scale are entirely different from the ones that govern on the smallest scale.

Continue reading Verzion intros FiOS Quantum, officially priced up to 300Mbps

Verzion intros FiOS Quantum, officially priced up to 300Mbps

Posted by Gsurface on June 18, 2012 No comments

What’s faster than FiOS internet service? FiOS Quantum evidently, as Verizon’s latest high-speed internet service gets an official name and pricing. Effectively doubling every tier — except the entry-level 15/5 — each can be acquired with or without a custom bundle, double or triple play, and range in price from $ 65 to $ 175 a month — except the 300 down / 65 up which is only available by itself for $ 210 a month. Willing to commit for two years? Well, then you can save yourself a few extra bucks a month. Existing customers won’t have to pay an upgrade fee to take advantage of the new speed, but their bill will probably go up about $ 10 to $ 15 a month — depending on what other changes they might make to their bundle. The real question is can one even take advantage of these crazy speeds, but we for one would love to find out.

Verzion intros FiOS Quantum, officially priced up to 300Mbps originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Jun 2012 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget

Display Makers To Use Quantum Dots For Efficiency and Color Depth

Posted by Gsurface on June 16, 2012 No comments

ArmageddonLord writes with this news from the IEEE Spectrum, reporting on display industry gathering Display Week: “Liquid crystal displays dominate today’s big, bright world of color TVs. But they’re inefficient and don’t produce the vibrant, richly hued images of organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screens, which are expensive to make in large sizes. Now, a handful of start-up companies aim to improve the LCD by adding quantum dots, the light-emitting semiconductor nanocrystals that shine pure colors when excited by electric current or light. When integrated into the back of LCD panels, the quantum dots promise to cut power consumption in half while generating 50 percent more colors. Quantum-dot developer Nanosys says an LCD film it developed with 3M is now being tested, and a 17-inch notebook incorporating the technology should be on shelves by year’s end.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Move Over, Quantum Cryptography: Classical Physics Can Be Unbreakable Too

Posted by Gsurface on June 15, 2012 No comments

MrSeb writes “Researchers from Texas A&M University claim to have pioneered unbreakable cryptography based on the laws of thermodynamics; classical physics, rather than quantum. In theory, quantum crypto (based on the laws of quantum mechanics) can guarantee the complete secrecy of transmitted messages: To spy upon a quantum-encrypted message would irrevocably change the content of the message, thus making the messages unbreakable. In practice, though, while the communication of the quantum-encrypted messages is secure, the machines on either end of the link can never be guaranteed to be flawless. According to Laszlo Kish and his team from Texas A&M, however, there is a way to build a completely secure end-to-end system — but instead of using quantum mechanics, you have to use classical physics: the second law of thermodynamics, to be exact. Kish’s system is made up of a wire (the communication channel), and two resistors on each end (one representing binary 0, the other binary 1). Attached to the wire is a power source that has been treated with Johnson-Nyquist noise (thermal noise). Johnson noise is often the basis for creating random numbers with computer hardware.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Quantum Cryptography Outperformed By Classical Technique

Posted by Gsurface on June 14, 2012 No comments

The secrecy of a controversial new cryptographic technique is guaranteed, not by quantum mechanics, but by the laws of thermodynamics, say physicists

Quantum cryptography has had a bad couple of years. For a decade or so, we were promised the capability to send messages with absolute secrecy guaranteed by the laws of physics. At least in theory.

A Photonic C-NOT Gate Breakthrough for Quantum Computing

Posted by Gsurface on May 24, 2012 No comments

Physicists have built a quantum logic gate that combines a quantum dot that fires photons with a photonic circuit that processes them

In the race to build powerful quantum computers, many groups are competing to build logic gates that can process quantum information and still be connected together on a large scale.

Quantum Dots May Be Safe to Use in Patients

Posted by Gsurface on May 21, 2012 No comments

The colorful, glowing crystals could prove to be useful as a surgical aid.

Four rhesus monkeys injected with tiny luminescent crystals called quantum dots showed no signs of ill effects over a one-year period, according to a study just published in Nature Nanotechnology.

First Simulation Of Quantum Tunnelling On A Quantum Computer

Posted by Gsurface on May 15, 2012 No comments

Quantum tunnelling had always been thought too complex to simulate on today’s simple quantum computers. Now a new approach to quantum computing has changed that and opens the door to more complex simulations

The exploitation of quantum weirdness for computing is one of the great goals of modern physics. It’s promise is dramatic for a wide range of number-crunching tasks.

NIST researchers store two images in a cloud of gas, open new possibilities for quantum memory

Posted by Gsurface on May 10, 2012 No comments

Physicists have already been able to store a single image in a cloud of rubidium gas, but researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Maryland have now made a new breakthrough that could open up some new possibilities for quantum memory. As Technology Review’s Physics arXiv blog reports, they’ve managed to store two sequential images in the cloud (not to be confused with “the cloud”) and retrieve (or view) them at different times with about 90 percent accuracy — something that could technically be called a movie. That was done using much the same technique that allows a single image to be stored in the gas, although storing multiple images apparently has the side effect of causing them to be retrieved in the reverse order of how they went in. As TR notes, however, even with that quirk, this new method could give rubidium gas a leg up over something like holographic storage, which has only been able to store and retrieve multiple images at the same time.

NIST researchers store two images in a cloud of gas, open new possibilities for quantum memory originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 May 2012 18:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget

A Boost For Quantum Reality

Posted by Gsurface on May 9, 2012 No comments

Eponymous Hero sends this excerpt from Nature:
“The philosophical status of the wavefunction — the entity that determines the probability of different outcomes of measurements on quantum-mechanical particles — would seem to be an unlikely subject for emotional debate. Yet online discussion of a paper claiming to show mathematically that the wavefunction is real has ranged from ardently star-struck to downright vitriolic since the article was first released as a preprint in November 2011. … [The authors] say that the mathematics leaves no doubt that the wavefunction is not just a statistical tool, but rather, a real, objective state of a quantum system.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Quantum Rainbow Photon Gun Unveiled

Posted by Gsurface on April 23, 2012 No comments

A photon gun capable of reliably producing single photons of different colours could become an important building block of a quantum internet

We’ve heard much about the possibility of a quantum internet which uses single photons to encode and send information protected by the emerging technology of quantum cryptography.