Researchers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) have recently made claims on finding a proof of concept to deliver cheaper, warmer, and robust quantum computing which can be manufactured using conventional silicon chip foundries.

According to a statement, the university said that most quantum computers work only at fractions of a degree over absolute zero. To maintain that kind of temperature, a multi-million-dollar refrigeration solution is required.

However, as a potential solution, the university touts that the proof-of-concept (POC) quantum processor unit cell could work at 1.5 Kelvin, which apparently is 15 times warmer than the main competing chip-based technology being developed by IBM, Google, and others, which uses superconducting qubits (quantum bits).

As per UNSW Prof. Andrew Dzurak, this temperature is still low and can be achieved with just a few thousand dollars' worth of refrigeration, rather than pumping in large investments to cool chips to 0.1 Kelvin.

With this development, researchers at USNSW anticipate overcoming a huge obstacle limiting quantum computers from becoming a reality, with the POC quantum processor unit cell which is not required to operate at temperatures below one-tenth of a Kelvin.

UNSW claims that the unit cell developed by Dzurak's team includes two qubits confined in a pair of quantum dots embedded in silicon. The result can be manufactured by utilizing existing silicon chip plants and would certainly not require multi-million-dollar cooling solutions.

Integrating conventional silicon chips would also be easier, as they are required to control the quantum processor, said UNSW, adding that a quantum computer is able to perform complex calculations that require millions of qubit pairs, and may generally require at least a decade to develop.

Meanwhile, Dzurak said that every qubit pair added to the system cause an increase in total heat generation, further causing errors. This is one of the reasons why current designs are required to be kept near absolute zero.

Source Credit: https://www.zdnet.com/article/unsw-touts-hot-qubits-as-breaking-practical-quantum-computing-constraints/