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  • Quantum computers look like they're going to be a big part of our computing future.

  • But so far, it's been famously difficult to get them to do anything super useful.

  • Lots of new technologies are aiming to get commercially viable quantum computing here just a little bit faster,

  • including one innovation that shrinks quantum tech down onto a chip:

  • a cryochip.

  • But just so we're all on the same page to start off,

  • classical computing works like this:

  • your computer uses bits, which are basically blips of electricity that are represented as 0's and 1's.

  • There are only two options in a bit, either 0 or 1, 'yes' or 'no.'

  • That means all of our computing is limited to this binary framework to ask questions and get answers.

  • But quantum computers exploit quantum mechanics for information processing.

  • This is this the set of laws that we think dictates the behavior of the tiniest particles in our universe

  • including, some of these particles' ability to exist in multiple states at once.

  • They're both on and off at the same time, a phenomenon called superposition.

  • In a quantum computer, the computing units that use this and other quantum phenomena

  • to make calculations are called quantum bits, or qubits.

  • Instead of the 0 or 1 of a classical bit,

  • a qubit exists in this space where it can be both at the same time or even somewhere in between.

  • Okay, that's the basics.

  • Because of this ability of qubits,

  • quantum computers have the potential to run really complex calculations

  • exponentially faster than classical computers can.

  • You can picture it kinda like if a classical computer solves a maze

  • by trying each path out of the maze one at a time,

  • a quantum computer solves a maze by trying all the paths at once.

  • But there's a catch.

  • While qubits do have the potential to be super powerful,

  • they're also really, really hard to both make and control.

  • They're so sensitive that they are influenced by literally everything around them.

  • So, to make sure the qubits are superconductive like they're supposed to be,

  • and to keep them insulated from the 'noise' of all the other molecules out in the world and to reduce errors,

  • current quantum computers have to make and keep their qubits in freezers

  • that are as close to absolute zero as physically possible

  • and that's colder than outer space!

  • But the rest of the quantum computerlike the electronics that tell the qubits how to behave

  • and that then read the output of those qubits on the other end

  • they can't work at temperatures that low.

  • That issue, plus the need to so closely control those qubits' behavior,

  • means that what we have now is this tangled web of wires that connects each individual qubit

  • to the rest of the computer.

  • Which is okay for the quantum computers of today, which have less than 100 qubits.

  • But eventually, we'll need to scale up to the million-qubit systems to tackle the problems we want answers to,

  • so this set up just isn't sustainable.

  • One solution? A cryogenic computer chip.

  • Intel just debuted a chip they're calling Horse Ridge,

  • which may seems like a weird thing to call a computer chip,

  • but it's actually named after one of the coldest places in Oregon, where Intel has a big presence.

  • And it's appropriately named, because this technology takes those electronics needed to control the qubits,

  • and puts them on a chip that's capable of functioning at about 4 Kelvin,

  • so they can live inside the cryogenic chamber with the qubits!

  • But how?

  • It's a CMOS chip, which stands for complementary metal oxide semiconductor.

  • That's the same kind of chip found in any microprocessor,

  • like you'd have in your phone or your computer.

  • And that allows the chip to contain all of those circuits

  • required for the billions of electrical circuits we'd need for a large-scale quantum computer.

  • It uses four different radiofrequency channels, toowhich gives it the potential to control up to 128 qubits!

  • Which is a lot for us right now.

  • That takes a system like this,

  • and shrinks it down to something like this.

  • Which is a pretty huge milestone,

  • because getting electronics to function at temperatures that low is really hard.

  • This is Intel's version, but Google and Microsoft are also both developing cryogenic chips.

  • And this aspect of Horse Ridge is actually just the first step in Intel's plan to streamline quantum tech.

  • They're also exploring something called silicon spin qubits, which they hope could be robust enough

  • to operate at temperatures as high as one Kelvin,

  • which would be a giant step up in temperature for qubits.

  • Intel actually calls these 'hot' qubits, which I think is really cute.

  • This paves the way for maybe eventually having the qubits and their electronic controls on one chip together,

  • which would be huge.

  • It's going to take all kinds of innovation in quantum physics and materials science

  • to get us to a future where we can use quantum computers to radically advance science,

  • medicine, tech, and...well, just about everything.

  • A cryogenic chip is just one exciting development in a huge sea of innovations

  • that we'll likely be hearing about as researchers from around the world

  • work to make quantum computing more of a working reality.

  • If you want more in-depth info on what quantum computers are and how they work,

  • you should check out our other quantum computing videos on this channel,

  • like this one on quantum supremacy,

  • or some of mine that I've made for channels like Lawrence Livermore National Lab.

  • Let us know what other quantum stuff you want us to cover down in the comments below,

  • and subscribe Seeker for all of your breaking computing news.

  • Thanks so much for watching, and I'll see you next time.

Quantum computers look like they're going to be a big part of our computing future.

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量子計算的未來可能生活在低溫芯片上 (The Future of Quantum Computing Could Live on a Cryogenic Chip)

  • 7 2
    Summer 發佈於 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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