'Quantum' Rescue Computer?

Sunday, May 22, 2011


Quantum always sounded mysterious. Letter Q alone is mysterious. Quantum has become popular, used as a brand, but really do not understand. Quantum opposite of classical physics and all our intuition. Engineering science is to avoid being too theoretical and can not be applied. But this may be the only hope to avoid the end of the progress of the computer.
Although we are always surprised to see the new computer models appear every month, this theoretically no end. Computing the present - a conventional computer - done by the transistor, and its speed depends on the size of transistors. Progress computers that until now happening is because the transistors become smaller. Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel, in the '60s said, the number of transistors per square inch would be multiplied two times each year.
One day it could be a transistor of a single atom and Richard Feynmann, the greatest physicist since Albert Einstein, argue that this is the smallest possible size of the transistor. Surely this extraordinary success to achieve that measure, but is this really the end of the progress of the computer? No, with the Quantum Computer. Quantum Computer, unlike many other terms, it uses quantum phenomena that can not be imitated conventional computer. This is not an ordinary computer development, but a new concept altogether.
Quantum Computer can process much faster than conventional computers. In essence, quantum computers can process in parallel, so that computing is much faster. To 1 million data, conventional computers have 500 000 calculations, while the Quantum Computer only need 1000. That is, can be 500 times faster! This can only be achieved with quantum theory. Quantum, the opposite of our intuition, saying that nothing is certain. A particle can not be said must be somewhere, but only so-called probability wave function.
If we tried to find atom with even the most advanced microscope, we will not be able to know exactly where the atom is located. This is not a shortage of equipment, this is the nature of nature itself is strange. When observed, this wave function collapses and it becomes a real particle (therefore, we have never seen a wave function). Eg something just might be able to be particles in the two conditions A or B. If we observe, will we get A or B, turn. However, while not observed, the particle will be at A and B simultaneously (the particle is in a superposition of A and B).
As someone confused to choose between chicken and fish at the restaurant, he would withhold a decision as long as possible and continue to see the menu, thinking, up to now maid came and she finally had to order one. But before the waiter (observers) to come, she is in a superposition of chicken and fish.
Erwin Schrvdinger, inventor of the principle of this uncertainty, the fantasy Schrvdinger's Cat experiment, proving that even before observed, the cats in his experiments could be in a state of life and death as well - live well and die well!
Strange and confusing nature of this would be relied upon Quantum Computer. -Incredibly powerful as a conventional computer, he always works with bits, binary digits that can only be 1 or 0. Quantum Computer can escape from this restriction, because it can be in a state of superposition of 1 and 0 at the sametime. This figure is called qubits (quantum bits, of course) which can be 1, can be 0 or can be between 1 and 0 - remember, this is not to say 0.6 but 60% probability of A and 40% probability of B.
Qubits used is the spin of atoms or electrons. Spin that there is no analogy in classical physics is the nature of a particle which has two alternatives, up or down. We can assume that up is down are 1 and 0. Over the past is not observed, qubits can be in a superposition of up and down, and interact with other qubits. Two qubits can be in four states at once: 00, 10, 01 and 11; four to eight-state qubits at once. A quantum computer with 100 qubits could process the same situation in 2100, the same as a conventional computer with 1030 processors!
Quantum Computer Is this really could be made? The answer, Quantum Computer've ever made! In 2000, IBM has made quantum computers with 5 qubits with the atom as a processor.
The question now, whether quantum computers can be economical for everyone? With tremendous potential, certainly not just ogled by quantum physics theory but also by engineering. One day, and perhaps soon, we could just see the Quantum Computer is not a dream but as a technical college.

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