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University of Michigan develops quantum processor
"We levitate the atom in the chip by applying certain electrical signals to the tiny nearby electrodes," explained Professor Christopher Monroe, University of Michigan Physics professor and co-inventor of the chip. While other researchers use neutral atoms, Monroe's chip traps ions - atoms with missing or extra electrons - on his chip.
Quantum computing is seen as a great leap forward in computing – a kind of Holy Grail of sorts. However, Quantum processors will probably not find their way into a computer near you any time soon – apart from being highly experimental (not to mention hideously expensive), they can excel in computations involving waveform analysis or cryptography, but perform poorly when tasked with such applications as Microsoft Word or checking email.
User Comments: 31
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i love it... doesn't it seem like you could use this to create artificial logic?
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i think this could and should be used for something way beyond storage and personal computing
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The future of conventional processors have been in doubt for a while now, so it is nice to see the boundries are being expanded to this exciting feild.
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Man, a processor that has the potential to be a monster, but yet cannot browse through Microsoft word, and email quickly? well, on one side of the spectrum, it sounds good. But on the other, it quite disappointing. For me, I'm just waiting for a PC that can perform tasks instantly, with no wait at all.
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[b][quote]" they can excel in computations involving waveform analysis or cryptography, but perform poorly when tasked with such applications as Microsoft Word or checking email. "[/quote][/b]... never realized how much of a resource hog Word was.Anyhoo, I would love to overclock one of these babies. Water cooling, performance RAM... and of course, quantum processors
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Two good points mentioned in the comments. One about storage. This is where I eagerly await the next break through. We need storage that is far mare reliable, larger, and MUCH faster then what we have now.And someone mentioned having a PC where every task happens right away. That has always been my dream as well. And permenent storage is one LARGE leap to get us there. It is the largest bottleneck a PC has. Your computer can only run as fast as it can pull data off the HDD into RAM and processed. What would a PC be like if a CPU's CACHE RAM was 2GB and the main RAM was actually your permenent storage? Imagine how fast the PC would be communicating with the "HDD" at the speed of RAM, and communicating with RAM at the speed of cache?!Perhaps quantum can get us there?
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[b]Originally posted by vigilante:[/b][quote]This is where I eagerly await the next break through. We need storage that is far mare reliable, larger, and MUCH faster then what we have now.[/quote]A breakthrough has already been made. Check this out.[url]http://www.inphase-technologies.com/technology/[/ur
]A process is only as fast as the slowest step so unless the speed of RAM is able to catch up with quatum computing, we're going to be stuck with speeds not much faster than what we currently have due to the bottleneck in the RAM. There is no point of having INSANE processing speed when the RAM is slow. All y'all ppl researching RAM technology listen up: YOU BETTER BE PREPARED FOR QUANTUM COMPUTING!!!! -
Quantum processors really won't find a way in a home PC anytime soon. Quantum processing doesn't use the conventional boolean (binary) computing used currently. If cultivated, sure it would extend everything as we know it, kind of like opening a new dimension. Quantum processing uses multivariable forms to accomplish calculations, which becomes more convoluted when the processor has to make checks into each action it performs. At the moment, it is only useful for a few task-specific actions which utilizes the features of quantum computing; anything else is either a waste of its abilities or even performs worse in comparison to a normal PC because of the unconventional checksums.
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As stunning as this new development in technology is, it may never reach the consumer market. When I was in college, I was fortunate enough to view two presentations on holographic storage, and that is something that we will surely see in a consumer market. According to the presenter, the entire Library of Congress could be placed onto a single holographic disc in binary format. Also, to vigilante whom posted about RAM being used as permanent storage, you may want to look into a program called Virtual Hard Drive. This Windows application is capable of enabling portions of system memory to be emulated as a hard disk drive itself. In short, this means files placed into this virtual hard drive can be accessed in nanoseconds, versus milliseconds.I’m not surprised at all to find that quantum processing would be ineffective in tandem with typical user applications. Awhile back, I worked at a small computer shop called SpaceCenter Systems that sold various computer components, one of which were video cards. There were high-end video cards for sale by Nvidia, ATI, and Matrox, and the most costly was manufactured by Matrox. A misguided customer purchased the Matrox video card, thinking that because it was more expensive than the Nvidia 7800 GT, that it would out-perform it in Doom 3. Needless to say, he was not a happy customer. The moral of that story, as I perceive it to be, is things aren’t always what they seem. I’m sure quantum processors will have a very specialized use in a variety of scientific fields, and in spite of my insatiable gaming needs, I realize it’s better left that way.
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Whoa, weird. I guess since it's quantum computing, it's kind of cool.
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This whole thing makes me think of Stargate SG1. Maybe its because I've been running a marathon watching all the seasons (1 - 7) for the past month.
Anyway, sounds really cool but I agree that this will probably never reach into the consumer market. At least not anytime soon.. and by that I mean not in the next 20 years. Its too wide a gap to jump so the adoption of the technology, compatability with software already out there and software to be developed would dig it an early grave.I could see the US military and scientific organizations putting it to some good use though. -
Quantum computers great scott! I am surprised no one have mentioned the HAL 9000 "I'm completely operational, and all my circuits are functioning perfectly. " Gotta love technology. The above users were right that this would not be for consumer application but as Asphix it would be useful the for goverments and the scientific community.
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what if somebody were to simulate this ion in a computer program?... or create a program that works using the same means
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Definately a cool development, however, I reckon that this quantum computer would be historically comparable to pre-UNIVAC binary computers from 50 years ago. Still a very very long way to go before we see any world shaping results from this discovery.Fiziks, you're wondering why this cannot be simulated in a computer program... Well the beauty of quantum computing is that it gets us away from the 1s and 0s approach of conventional computing, so simulating this with conventional hardware would be just as, if not more, inefficient then emulating x86 programs on a quantum platform...There definately needs to be developments to other areas of hardware before this puppy can really shine though. Someone mentioned RAM, which is definately true, we will need to develop quantum RAM to use with our quantum processors. This is not that difficult...My question, which I've never seen addressed, is how are they going to facilitate communication between the processor in RAM? Conventional PCBs would prove a significant bottleneck, because not only would they have to carry more data, but the actual transmission time between source and destination would become significant.Many interesting developments sure to be made in this field. By the end of my generations lifetime quantum computing will be something to behold.
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hm..
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[quote]For me, I'm just waiting for a PC that can perform tasks instantly, with no wait at all.[/quote]Buy a really old computer, it can!
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[b]Originally posted by fiziks:[/b][quote]hm..[/quote]Perhaps a little more importantly, it cannot be simulated on a computer because to calculate one quantum calculation would take millionjs if not billions of calculations on a current binary X86 machine. The quantum world is like that, endless possibilities.More importantly again, even if you could simulate it on a computer, it would only work untill you looked at it, at which point the simulation would revert to a single result. Try telling THAT to Windows or Linux!
edit: not withstanding of course, that evidently a quantum calculation isn't the same thing as an x86 one.[Edited by spike on 2006-01-19 12:18:52] -
i wish there was some extensively detailed documentation available somewhere describing exactly how it works...
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Very cool. With this type of technology in the hands of big brother, he can decrypt our communications on the fly. Looks like this can have a major impact on secure communications in the future.
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we've been stuck with the same old RAM for a while. 5 years ago, you could upgrade to 2GB max. Now, you can upgrade to 2GB max. Ummm... where is the boom that we are seeeing with processors an video cards?
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looks like it may have some promises, but the real usage still need some times to get a working system I think.
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I thought this was interesting:HALIBMDo you see the pattern? On the Big Brother comment, I can certainly see this technology being misused. Then again, it would seem any device could be used for good or bad purposes. Guns are a perfect example, they have the power to defend or destroy, but it’s left in the hands of the owner to decide how to wield that power.
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[b]Originally posted by fiziks:[/b][quote]i wish there was some extensively detailed documentation available somewhere describing exactly how it works...[/quote]Much of it are still in experimental phases. First, the scientists/engineers don't know fully know everything themselves, so it would be difficult to document. Second, this is hot stuff in case you haven't realized by now! Why publish anything so other companies would chime in on your monopoly?And someone said it above: To produce a quantum computer would require a redesign of every component. All the hardwares that we use now are in binary, which limits and nullifies the purpose of quantum processing in the first place. In other words, engineers and scientists have to rebuild the computer architecture from the ground up, which is no small feat.
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Two things:1. Isn't the chip made of gallium arsenide? Meaning it contains arsenic, and it's deadly poisonous!! Most of us here (excluding me) are tweakers and overclockers, so we would just open up the case (how big would it be?) and check out the processor and stuff and, how many poisoning cases?2. It took soooooooooooo much time to develop the PCI-Express port to shift from AGP. And that's only an upgrade. Imagine rebuilding an entire system from scratch (exclude the processor, it's already made!). So let's wait about 10-15 years or so to let it slowly develop and another 2-3 years for it to adapt into our homes.
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With the cost, materials, and architecture issues involved in this I don't think it enter our homes anytime soon. And while it has its flaws at current, we all know nothing in computing is perfect the first time around. Changes are always made to improve on the original design.
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