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Quantum computing by its very nature is set to revolutionize how we think about computers and how we use them. But if the tech world knows one thing down to the chill in the marrow of its bones, its that every opportunity brings the shadow of a threat in its wake and vice versa.

In September, 2022, UN Secretary-General Antnio Guterres included quantum computing among his list of perceived techno-threats for the times in which we live, claiming it could destroy cybersecurity.

The idea of any single breakthrough being able to destroy the whole notion of cybersecurity sounds like the plot of an as-yet-unmade James Bond movie (Hey, Eon Productions Ltd call us).

We sat down with Dr Ali El Kaafarani, a research fellow at Oxford Universitys Mathematical Institute, and founder of PQShield, to ask him whether the sky was really falling in.

THQ:

What exactly is the threat of quantum computing? Among everything else there is to worry about, whats the scope and the scale of the quantum threat? Why should we take it seriously?

AEK:

Quantum computers will have the power to solve computational problems that were previously thought impossible for a standard computer to crack. While this presents many opportunities, it also poses a significant security risk as it renders the traditional encryption methods used to protect virtually all of the worlds sensitive information obsolete.

Important and sensitive data, even when encrypted, is constantly being stolen and stored by bad actors who hope to decipher it one day. This is known as a harvest now, decrypt later attack. When powerful quantum computers arrive, all our data will be vulnerable to this kind of retrospective attack.

According to the US National Academy of Sciences, an initial quantum computer prototype capable of breaking current encryption methods could be developed in the next decade.

THQ:

Well thats pretty chilling.

AEK:

For nation states, the intelligence value of reaching this threshold is almost impossible to quantify. NIST says that once this threshold has been crossed, nothing can be done to protect the confidentiality of encrypted material that was previously stored by an adversary. Thats why data needs to be protected with quantum-resistant encryption today, even before these machines are a reality.

THQ:

So, when the Secretary-General said quantum computing could destroy cybersecurity, there wasnt even a hint of hyperbole in there? Any idea when within the next decade this could happen?

AEK:

According to Booz Allen Hamilton, the anticipated cracking of encryption by quantum computers must be treated as a current threat. Only late last year, top former US national security officials including the Deputy Director of National Intelligence, warned the world that the danger of these types of attacks was immediate.

THQ:

Well its been nice sleeping at night. So, for instance, how do businesses that want to outlive this development assess their vulnerability to quantum attack? What stages does such an assessment come in?

AEK:

There are many who recognize the seriousness of the quantum threat but dont actually know how to go about protecting themselves against it, or who feel overwhelmed thinking about the overhaul associated with migrating their systems to meet a new set of standards.

THQ:

We can imagine the overwhelm, certainly.

AEK:

However, if you break it down into smaller steps, the migration process is not so daunting.Transitioning from cryptosystem to cryptosystem is no trivial task, which is why it is best to start as early as possible.

As the NIST National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) points out: It is critical to begin planning for the replacement of hardware, software and services that use public-key algorithms now, so that the information is protected from future attacks.

Switching from one cryptosystem to another within a given security solution is unlikely to be a simple drop-in task, particularly for businesses that havent even begun planning for the post-quantum transition, which is likely to be the biggest cryptographic transition in decades.

THQ:

So were thinking this is not a particularly straightforward job?

AEK:

Well, the ease or difficulty with which certain cryptographic algorithms can be switched out in embedded hardware and software will determine the speed with which a transition can be achieved. Crypto-agility allows for a smoother transition between standards. If a system is crypto-agile, it means it is built with flexibility and futureproofing in mind, with cryptographic algorithms that are easy to update and replace over time with minimal disruption to the overall system.

THQ:

So the more agile a business is and the sooner it starts getting to grip with the invisible ticking clock of the quantum threat the more likely it is to be able to ride out the new paradigm?

Once businesses have an understanding of their quantum computing vulnerability, what can they actually do about it?

AEK:

We dont yet know for certain that a high-functioning quantum computer exists, because it is not unfeasible that a bad actor would choose to conceal its existence in order to maintain its technical advantage along with the element of surprise. The prudent way forward is to start preparing for the worst now because its a question of when, not if.

Post-quantum cryptography standards were announced in July last year. The first draft standards will be published in the next couple of months, with the final versions ready in the first half of 2024. In the meantime, it is possible and advised to use hybrid cryptography libraries that can support both classical and post-quantum standards in the transition phase.

In the meantime, businesses can ensure that their cryptography is FIPS 140-3 compliant. FIPS 140-3 is a good stopgap to aim for until more tailored standards are introduced, and because it is a mandatory standard for the protection of sensitive data within US and Canadian federal systems, it is a prerequisite for any contractors that want to do business with these governments.

Another place to look is the Department of Homeland Security, which published a post-quantum cryptography roadmap a useful guideline for establishing a transition plan before standards are finalized.

THQ:

Are we confident that NISTs new cryptographic standards are sufficient to meet the quantum threat of today? And is the threat likely to evolve as we go forward?

AEK:

Because the future capabilities of quantum computers remain an open question, NIST has taken a variety of mathematical approaches to safeguard encryption. Each mathematical approach has different advantages and disadvantages in terms of its practicality, implementation and design.

The logic to all this is that future research may discover new attacks or weaknesses that can be exploited to render any one particular algorithm obsolete. Its why NIST may ultimately choose multiple algorithms to standardize and hold another handful close at hand as backup options.

THQ:

If, as we gather, the threat is likely to evolve, how do we prepare now to meet it? Whats the scope for quantum cryptographic security over, say, the next five years?

AEK:

Meeting the threat relies on implementing post-quantum cryptography. So, naturally, in the next five years, well see different sectors moving to adopt post-quantum cryptography. In some cases, this wont be by choice they will be following mandatory timelines set out by the US Government and others.

Remember, according to the US National Academy of Sciences, a quantum computer prototype capable of breaking current encryption methods could be developed within the next decade.

By 2030, it will surprise no-one if there are fully functioning quantum computers already.

Dr Ali El Kaafarani, CEO of PQShield.

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The potential threat of quantum computing - TechHQ

TOKYO and OSAKA, Japan, March 23, 2023 Fujitsu and Osaka Universitys Center for Quantum Information and Quantum Biology (QIQB) today revealed the development of a new, highly efficient analog rotation quantum computing architecture, representing a significant milestone toward the realization of practical quantum computing.

The new architecture reduces the number of physical qubits required for quantum error correction a prerequisite for the realization of fault-tolerant quantum computing by 90% from 1 million to 10,000 qubits. This breakthrough will allow research to embark on the construction of a quantum computer with 10,000 physical qubits and 64 logical qubits, which corresponds to computing performance of approximately 100,000 times that of the peak performance of conventional high performance computers.

Moving forward, Fujitsu and Osaka University will further refine this new architecture to lead the development of quantum computers in the early FTQC era, with the aim of applying quantum computing applications to a wide range of practical societal issues including material development and finance.

Error Correction for Fault-tolerant Computing: Making Practical Quantum a Reality

Gate-based quantum computers are expected to revolutionize research in a wide range of fields including quantum chemistry and complex financial systems, as they will offer significantly higher calculation performance than current classical computers. Logical qubits, which consist of multiple physical qubits, play a major key role in quantum error correction technology, and ultimately the realization of practical quantum computers that can provide fault-tolerant results.

Within conventional quantum computing architectures, calculations are performed using a combination of four error-corrected universal quantum gates (CNOT, H, S, and T gate). Within these architectures, especially quantum error correction for T-gates requires a large number of physical qubits, and rotation of the state vector in the quantum calculation requires repeated logical T-gate operations for approximately fifty times on average. Thus, the realization of a genuine fault-tolerant quantum computer is estimated to require more than one million physical qubits in total.

For this reason, quantum computers in the early FTQC era using conventional architecture for quantum error correction can only conduct calculations on a very limited scale below that of classical computers, as they work with a maximum of about 10,000 physical qubits, a number far below that required for genuine, fault-tolerant quantum computing.

To address these issues, Fujitsu and Osaka University developed a new, highly efficient analog rotation quantum computing architecture that is able to significantly reduce the number of physical qubits required for quantum error correction, and enable even quantum computers with 10,000 physical qubits to perform better than current classical computers, accelerating progress toward the realization of genuine, fault-tolerant quantum computing.

Fujitsu and Osaka University have been promoting joint R&D in quantum error correction technology including new quantum computation architectures for the early FTQC era at the Fujitsu Quantum Computing Joint Research Division, a collaborative research effort of the QIQB, established on October 1, 2021 at the campus of Osaka University as part of Fujitsus Fujitsu Small Research Laboratory program.

About the Newly Developed Quantum Computing Architecture

By redefining the universal quantum gate set, Fujitsu and Osaka University succeeded in implementing a phase rotating gate a world first which enables highly efficient phase rotation, a process which previously required a high number of physical qubits and quantum gate operations.

In contrast to conventional architectures that required repeated logical T-gate operations using a large number of physical qubits, gate operation within the new architecture is performed by phase rotating directly to any specified angle.

In this way, the two parties succeeded in reducing the number of qubits required for quantum error correction to around 10% of existing technologies, and the number of gate operations required for arbitrary rotation to approx. 5% of conventional architectures. In addition, Fujitsu and Osaka University suppressed quantum error probability in physical qubits to about 13%, thus achieving highly accurate calculations.

The newly developed computing architecture lays the foundation for the construction of a quantum computer with 10,000 physical qubits and 64 logical qubits, which corresponds to computing performance of approximately 100,000 times that of the peak performance of conventional high performance computers.

About Fujitsu

Fujitsus purpose is to make the world more sustainable by building trust in society through innovation. As the digital transformation partner of choice for customers in over 100 countries, our 124,000 employees work to resolve some of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Fujitsus range of services and solutions draw on five key technologies: Computing, Networks, AI, Data & Security, and Converging Technologies, which we bring together to deliver sustainability transformation. Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated revenues of 3.6 trillion yen (US$32 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022 and remains the top digital services company in Japan by market share.

About Osaka University

Osaka University was founded in 1931 as one of the seven imperial universities of Japan and is now one of Japans leading comprehensive universities with a broad disciplinary spectrum. This strength is coupled with a singular drive for innovation that extends throughout the scientific process, from fundamental research to the creation of applied technology with positive economic impacts. Its commitment to innovation has been recognized in Japan and around the world, being named Japans most innovative university in 2015 (Reuters 2015 Top 100) and one of the most innovative institutions in the world in 2017 (Innovative Universities and the Nature Index Innovation 2017). Now, Osaka University is leveraging its role as a Designated National University Corporation selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to contribute to innovation for human welfare, sustainable development of society, and social transformation.

Source: Fujitsu

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Fujitsu and Osaka University Develop New Quantum Computing ... - HPCwire

By Kylianne Chadwick, NASA Space Grant Science Writing Intern, University Communications

Wednesday

This spring, "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" premiered in movie theaters across the U.S. The movie depicts a "quantum realm" a world among subatomic particles. While the ideas in the movie differ greatly from the current scientific consensus of the quantum world, applications of quantum mechanics aren't just fantasy; physicists around the globe are applying quantum principles to create powerful quantum computers that outperform conventional computers.

Quantum computers hold the promise of revolutionizing computing. Unlike conventional computers, they take advantage of quantum-mechanical effects that seem to fly in the face of how humans typically experience the world. Because quantum computers follow an entirely different set of rules than traditional computers, they can solve certain problems exponentially faster.

University of Arizona students have developed a computer game to make complex quantum computation concepts easier to grasp. The game challenges users to arrange puzzle pieces into a shape that models a quantum computing circuit. The game was designed to teach students, and even quantum researchers, an unconventional model of quantum computation.

Ashlesha Patil a doctoral student in University of Arizona Wyant College of Optical Sciences and the university-housed, National Science Foundation-funded Center for Quantum Networks presented the puzzle project at a virtual meeting of the American Physical Society on March 22. The project was done under the mentorship of Center for Quantum Networks director Saikat Guha, who is a professor in the Wyant College of Optical Sciences, and Don Towsley, a professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Patil relates the game to tangram, a puzzle game that was invented in China in the late 1700s. This game includes seven puzzle pieces, each a particular geometric shape and size. Even with just seven pieces, there are more than 1 billion possible ways the pieces can be arranged.

"Our game is much like tangram because the players are challenged to arrange colored blocks on a grid," Patil said. "The game isn't exactly 'real' quantum computation, but rather an educational tool to teach students and even scientists an unconventional, measurement-based way of mapping quantum circuits."

Patil and her teammate Yosef Jacobson, an undergraduate double majoring in computer science and game design and development, have almost wrapped up the development phase of the computer game. They are awaiting minor cosmetic changes before the game will be tested by a broad range of users. The current version is designed to educate students in middle school and high school, and Patil believes that the game could help prepare the upcoming generation to build and optimize quantum computers.

"The quantum information industry is growing and needs a workforce that is trained in quantum theory," Patil said, adding that quantum computers have the potential to model atoms and molecules in ways that are immensely useful for several applications, including new types of drugs, batteries, fertilizers and energy sources.

"Even if a player doesn't end up in a career related to quantum computation, we hope this game might inspire them to go into a STEM-related field," Patil said. "Our hope is that this game could generate excitement about science, in general, with young students."

Conventional computers rely on electrical charges to encode information typically represented by ones and zeroes, which in turn encode bits. Quantum computers, on the other hand, use quantum bits, or "qubits," which can assume a state of both zero and one simultaneously until the state is actually measured, a property called superposition. Because of this, groups of qubits can represent vastly more combinations than classic computer bits.

The states of bits and qubits can be changed by hardware called "gates." All digital devices use gates in their computer circuits.

"A classical computer uses gates, such as the NOT gate, which converts a zero bit into a one bit," Patil explained. "Similarly, there are quantum gates that act on single or multiple qubits simultaneously to change their state, which are represented by the puzzle pieces in our game."

Whether players are aware of it or not, they are modeling a quantum circuit as they drag and drop colored blocks quantum gates onto the game grid, with each horizontal line on the grid representing a qubit. Each round, a random quantum circuit is generated, and the user is prompted to arrange the gates for that quantum circuit while following specific rules. These rules are governed by a measurement-based model of quantum computation, abbreviated as MBQC.

"One way to implement this game is to let students have fun with the game first, then explain what they actually accomplished later," Patil said. "In this way, even young students can gain a more intuitive understanding of the model without having to know all the technical details."

The goal of the game, which is played by one player at a time, is to cover the least possible amount of area when aligning the puzzle blocks or quantum gates. If the player successfully solves the circuit, they are given a score based on how "tightly" they were able to pack the blocks and therefore solve the puzzle.

The game is based off the MBQC model, which takes into account another quirk of the quantum world that is extremely difficult to reconcile with our everyday experience: entanglement.

"Entanglement is a quantum phenomenon in which particles are 'connected,' even across vast distances," Patil said. "This means that a certain physical property of the particles is completely correlated so that if you measure the physical property of one particle, you can determine the property of the other particle."

To perform computation using the MBQC model, researchers initially prepare multiple qubits that are already locked in an entangled state. They then work backward by using the measurements, or whether the qubit ends up as a zero or one, on the entangled qubits to implement gates.

"MBQC is not a very intuitive model because it differs greatly from the way we understand classical computers," Patil said. "Even scientists in the quantum research community are less familiar with it, and that's why we developed this game."

Conventionally, researchers focus on gates when depicting quantum computation in a different model called the circuit model. This method closely relates to classical computers.

"Our game takes the intuitive part of a classic circuit model gates and maps them into puzzle blocks that signify measurements in the MBQC model," Patil said. "This reduces some of the confusion that comes with understanding MBQC measurements, making the model easier to grasp."

Like the centuries-old tangram, the student-developed computer game holds numerous possibilities.

"An optimal mapping of a quantum circuit to measurement-based quantum computation is an open problem that has not been completely solved," Patil said. "We're still figuring out the best way to 'pack' the puzzle blocks the most efficient way for real quantum circuits. Especially when there are many qubits, things get complicated."

The game project was funded by an engineering workforce development fellowship that Patil received from the Center for Quantum Networks, or CQN. UArizona was awarded $26 million under the National Science Foundation's Engineering Research Center program in September 2020 to establish the center, which is also supported by the Department of Energy.

CQN is laying the technical foundations of the first U.S.-based quantum network that can distribute quantum information at high speeds, over long distances. Along with these technological goals, the center prioritizes community-based outreach to students, offering them opportunities in quantum research.

"Our outreach focuses mostly on the lower income areas of Arizona where the students have never met scientists before," Patil said. "As you can imagine, the students get very excited to see the scientists from CQN."

Once the computer game is finished, Patil hopes it will be included in outreach efforts and eventually reach students in classrooms around the nation.

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Confused by quantum computing? Students are developing a ... - University of Arizona News

Mikhail Lukin, a pioneer and leader in quantum science and quantum computing, has been named a University Professor, Harvards highest honor for faculty.

Beginning July 1, Lukin will hold the University Professorship established by Joshua Friedman 76, M.B.A. 80, J.D. 82, and Beth Friedman in 2017. The chair supports a tenured faculty member who has shown both extraordinary academic accomplishment and leadership within the University community.

A pioneer in applying quantum optics for quantum computing purposes, Professor Lukin is central to the Universitys ambitions in quantum science and engineering, Harvard President Larry Bacow said. As co-director of both the Harvard-MIT Center for Ultracold Atoms and the Harvard Quantum Initiative in Science and Engineering, he produces work that is not only elegant and beautiful, but also enormously promising in its capacity to create innovations that are likely to change many of our lives. It is a pleasure to welcome one of the best quantum information scientists in the world into the ranks of the University Professor.

Lukins work in quantum science and engineering aims to use quantum superposition and quantum entanglement the fundamental phenomena governing the interactions between photons, atoms, molecules, and electrons to create new devices and applications, including quantum computers.

Classical computers, such as smartphones and laptops, depend on binary bits of data denoted as 1s and 0s. Quantum computers use quantum bits, or qubits. Due to quantum superposition, which is the ability of something at the quantum level to be in multiple states at one time, qubits can be 1s, 0s, or both simultaneously. Because of qubits properties, quantum computers can solve highly complex computations in a few hundred minutes that would take a classical computer more than 10,000 years.

A pioneer in applying quantum optics for quantum computing purposes, Professor Lukin is central to the Universitys ambitions in quantum science and engineering.

Larry Bacow, Harvard president

According to Lukin, quantum computing has a potential to transform science and society, and the current era is akin to the early days of transistors and conventional computers, with many exciting opportunities that cut across physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, and computer science.

Quantum is a unique field, truly interdisciplinary, originating from physics, chemistry, and mathematics, with implications to philosophy, and more recently connections to engineering, computer science, business, global security, and public policy. At Harvard we have a truly extraordinary community that includes an exceptional group of students, postdocs, and faculty that closely collaborate across many departments and Schools, making it a very special place to do this work, said Lukin, who is currently the George Vasmer Leverett Professor of Physics. This groups collaborative efforts have already transformed the cutting-edge frontier in this field, and with this professorship, I hope to be able to help elevate this work even further by bringing together scientists and engineers to explore new scientific directions, make new discoveries, and realize applications that address the biggest challenges facing the world.

Lukin grew up in Russia at the end of the Cold War. He has said that those formative years were an unusual time that was extremely challenging, but he was fortunate to be taught by dedicated individuals who piqued his interest in physics and solving scientific problems while he earned his masters degree from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology.

When he arrived in the early 1990s at Texas A&M University in College Station, where he received his doctorate, and later when he came to Harvards Institute for Theoretical Atomic and Molecular Physics as a postdoc, Lukin said that he was very lucky to work with a remarkable group of mentors and peers who took him seriously as a researcher, but also helped him to mature and develop both as a scientist and a member of his community.

Inspired by the influence of his mentors, Lukin has advised or sponsored more than 150 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. He has also published more than 450 papers and has received several of the top awards in his field, including the I.I. Rabi Prize of American Physical Society (2009), the Willis E. Lamb Award for Quantum Optics and Laser Science (2017), the Charles Hard Townes Award of the Optical Society of America (2021), and the Norman F. Ramsey Prize of American Physical Society (2022).

The first University Professorships were created in 1935 as a means to recognize individuals of distinction working on the frontiers of knowledge, and in such a way as to cross the conventional boundaries of the specialties. With the addition of Lukin, 25 Harvard faculty members across the University currently hold this honor.

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Mikhail Lukin named University Professor Harvard Gazette - Harvard Gazette

Quantinuums New CEO Wants To Build The World's Most Valuable Quantum Company (And He Has The Expertise To Do It)  Forbes

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Quantinuums New CEO Wants To Build The World's Most Valuable Quantum Company (And He Has The Expertise To Do It) - Forbes