The knowledge and technologies invented and accumulated in the field of quantum information science are turning into near-future industrial technologies and products. The most obvious example is the quantum computer, in which many IT giants started investing large sums to develop. Besides the quantum computer, 'quantum technologies' also includes sensing and communication. Dr Yuimaru Kubo is an expert on quantum information science and technologies with 'spins in gem crystals'. He is based at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) where his research team is currently investigating how quantum information can be stored, transmitted, or amplified with unprecedented efficiencies utilising the spins of electrons or nuclei in 'gem crystals'.
The knowledge and technologies invented and accumulated in the field of quantum information science are turning into near-future industrial technologies and products. The most obvious example is the quantum computer, in which many IT giants started investing large sums to develop. Besides the quantum computer, 'quantum technologies' also includes sensing and communication. Dr Yuimaru Kubo is an expert on quantum information science and technologies with 'spins in gem crystals'. He is based at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) where his research team is currently investigating how quantum information can be stored, transmitted, or amplified with unprecedented efficiencies utilising the spins of electrons or nuclei in 'gem crystals'.
gressed rapidly in recent years in the hope of addressing these needs. This field of research covers many topics, and is developing at an unprecedented scale with the involvement of researchers from many different leading-edge science and technology fields. Although it is very hard to predict how things will turn out in the future, it seems that as far as a hardware is concerned, important roles will be played by photonic qubits for quantum communication, nuclear spin qubits for quantum memory, and electron spin qubits for quantum information processing to connect them together. This paper introduces the latest research trends relating to the production of photonic qubits used for quantum communication and computation, with particular reference to the results obtained by the author’s group. In quantum cryptography, 1)
The recently emerged field of quantum technology is aiming to employ quantum coherence and entanglement for realization of next generation sensors, standards, imaging systems, secure communication and computers.Although applications of quantum technologies cover a broad spectrum and their development stage varies from early demonstrations to commercially available devices, many challenges have been identified.The first includes tailoring materials for quantum technologies, which is playing an essential role in technological applications of quantum science.Solid state systems allowing long coherence time are essential for quantum computation and quantum sensing.Ultrapure materials with tailored isotopic content are important for reaching long coherence time of spin qubits (Awschalom et al., 2013).The ability to place single dopants with high precision and form spin qubits at desired location is essential for both quantum computing and quantum sensing applications (McCallum et al., 2012;Smith et al., 2019).The performance of different types of qubits is usually benchmarked in terms of controllability and coherence time.Usually solid-state systems allow fast control, but exhibit fast decoherence owing to complex environment.It is therefore important to search for new types of qubits combining isolation from environment and access via fast coherent control and readout.Novel approaches combining different quantum systems into build hybrid quantum devices for optimal performance is a promising avenue.Examples of such hybrid approaches are spin systems coupled to superconducting qubits (Kubo et al., 2011) and hybrid nuclear-electronic qubits (Morley et al., 2013).Optimal protocols for quantum technologies requires extension of coherence time of qubits beyond the coherence time of the isolated quantum system.The efficient protection toolkit includes dynamical decoupling (Yang et al., 2011) and quantum error correction (Terhal, 2015) based techniques.Although general principles of qubits protection were developed and tested experimentally in different model environments, it is essential to adapt them to realistic environmental noise.In the field of quantum sensing, it is also essential to combine protections against noise with non-reduced sensing performance.Experimental imperfections can be addressed using optimal control tools (Glaser et al., 2015).The development of efficient quantum algorithms is another growing field belonging to quantum software area.On one hand, it is essential to find problems where a quantum computer can outperform classical computers.On the other hand, it is essential to develop an application scenario for a limited number of qubits (Montanaro, 2016).In addition, in order to develop new algorithms, future work must include discoveries of application scenarios of already known algorithms.Application of quantum Fourier transform for sensing is a promising example of such new applications (Vorobyov et al., 2021).Signal processing is another field of quantum software that is becoming essential in applications.Advanced signal analysis protocols, like quantum compressed sensing, can be employed to quantify entanglement in large quantum devices via efficient quantum tomography (Riofrío et al., 2017).
Given the European and global context, the international scientific and technological competition, there are challenges that our society, where the exchange of information is omnipresent, must meet. These are the issues regarding quantum technologies. The countries which master them will have an undeniable strategic advantage in the fields of molecular medicine, new materials, carbon dioxide storage, etc. States, industrial giants, private and academic research consortia are investing massively in fundamental research or breakthrough innovation projects in the communication, computing, simulation, cryptography, metrology and other sectors. quantum sensors. This non-exhaustive article comments on economic and societal issues, describes the state of research, etc. It presents some reminders of quantum mechanics, necessary elements of technology and presents some current and future applications. It offers elements of foresight. Images or figures are the property of their authors cited as the source. For more information, bibliographical references and links to the websites of organizations and institutions are provided.
It is now roughly thirty years since the incipient ideas on quantum information science was concretely formalized. Over the last three decades, there has been much development in this field, and at least one technology, namely devices for quantum cryptography, is now commercialized. Yet, the holy grail of a workable quantum computing machine still lies faraway at the horizon. In any case, it took nearly several centuries before the vacuum tubes were invented after the first mechanical calculating were constructed, and several decades later, for the transistor to bring the current computer technology to fruition. In this review, we provide a short survey of the current development and progress in quantum information science. It clearly does not do justice to the amount of work in the past thirty years. Nevertheless, despite the modest attempt, this review hopes to induce younger researchers into this exciting field.
Quantum materials, characterized by their unique electronic, magnetic, and optical properties, are poised to revolutionize the future of computing and communication. These materials, including topological insulators, superconductors, and two-dimensional materials like graphene, exhibit quantum mechanical effects at macroscopic scales, offering unprecedented capabilities for technological advancement. In computing, quantum materials enable the development of quantum bits (qubits) that can perform complex computations at speeds unattainable by classical computers, significantly enhancing processing power and efficiency. For communication, they facilitate ultra-secure quantum communication networks through quantum entanglement and superposition, ensuring data integrity and privacy. Additionally, quantum materials support the creation of novel electronic devices with superior performance and energy efficiency. As research progresses, integrating quantum materials into practical applications will address current limitations and open new horizons in information technology, marking a pivotal shift toward a pioneering future in computing and communication.
An extensively pursued current direction of research in physics aims at the development of practical technologies that exploit the effects of quantum mechanics. As part of this ongoing effort, devices for quantum information processing, secure communication, and high-precision sensing are being implemented with diverse systems, ranging from photons, atoms, and spins to mesoscopic superconducting and nanomechanical structures. Their physical properties make some of these systems better suited than others for specific tasks; thus, photons are well suited for transmitting quantum information, weakly interacting spins can serve as long-lived quantum memories, and superconducting elements can rapidly process information encoded in their quantum states. A central goal of the envisaged quantum technologies is to develop devices that can simultaneously perform several of these tasks, namely, reliably store, process, and transmit quantum information. Hybrid quantum systems composed of different physical components with complementary functionalities may provide precisely such multitasking capabilities. This article reviews some of the driving theoretical ideas and first experimental realizations of hybrid quantum systems and the opportunities and challenges they present and offers a glance at the near- and long-term perspectives of this fascinating and rapidly expanding field.