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Big Blue's quantum team set out to discover if today's quantum devices could be used to complete a task that cannot be done on a classical system.

IBM researchers have finally proven in a real-world experiment that quantum computers are superior to classical devices although for now, only at a miniature scale.

Big Blue's quantum team set out to discover if today's quantum devices, despite their limitations, could be used to complete a task that cannot be done on a classical system.

Since quantum computing is still in its infancy, the researchers leveled the playing field between the two methods by designing a microscopic experiment with limited space that is, limited amount of available memory.

Two limited-space circuits were built, one quantum and one classical, with only one bit or qubit available for computation and result storage. The task programmed into the circuits consisted of finding the majority out of three input bits, returning zero if more than half of the bits are zero, and one if more than half of the bits are one.

The restrictions, said the scientists, enabled a fair comparison between the power of classical and quantum space when carrying out a calculation.

"Through our research, we're exploring a very simple question,"said IBM's quantum team in a blog post."How does the computational power differ when a computer has access to classical scratch space versus quantum scratch space?"

Equipped with a single bit for computation and storage, the classical system is not capable of running the algorithm, theorized the scientists. Even when giving the system's computational capabilities a boost by adding what is known as random Boolean gates, the classical computer only succeeded 87.5% of the time.

Quantum devices, on the other hand, fared better: a perfect, noiseless quantum computer could succeed 100% of the time, said the scientists in their theoretical demonstration.

This is because, unlike classical bits that can either represent a 1 or a 0, qubits can take on a combination of various states at once, meaning that they have access to a larger space of values. In other words, quantum space is more valuable than classical space.

The theory, however, is still some distance away from reality. Current quantum computers are still too noisy to achieve the perfect results demonstrated by the scientists in their paper. But when carrying out the experiment in real-life, with circuits calibrated to run the program more efficiently, IBM's team still observed a success rate of 93%, which beats the classical system.

"We show that qubits, even today's noisy qubits, offer more value than bits as a medium of storage during computations," said the scientists.

This means that even today's noisy quantum computers can offer better performance on the problem than the theoretical maximum performance of a classical device, suggesting that as the technology evolves, the performance gap with classical devices will only widen.

Big Blue's quantum team claims that this is a world-first demonstration of quantum advantage, because the theory is backed by a real-life experiment.

To date, research projects are concerned with proving a theoretical quantum advantage that can only be demonstrated when the hardware is mature enough to run large-scale programs, according to the scientists.

Fromimproving car manufacturing supply chainstooptimizing the routes of merchant ships around the world's oceans: there is no shortage of ideas when it comes to researching how quantum computing could create business value. But for now, scientists are mostly finding that quantum technologies are comparable to classical systems for small-scale problems, and only theorizing that quantum devices will eventually deliver an advantage as the computers develop.

"Here, for the first time that we are aware of, we report a simultaneous proof and experimental verification of a new kind of quantum advantage," said IBM's researchers.

As quantum hardware improves, these experimental verifications are expected to expand from tests carried out at the level of single bits. IBMrecently unveiled a quantum roadmap for the next few years, which includes a 1,121-qubit system to be built by 2023, on track to creating systems supporting more than one million qubits in the longer-term.

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IBM researchers demonstrate the advantage that quantum computers have over classical computers - ZDNet

By Washington University In St. LouisJune 30, 2021

Jung-Tsung Shen, associate professor in the Department of Electrical & Systems Engineering, has developed a deterministic, high-fidelity, two-bit quantum logic gate that takes advantage of a new form of light. This new logic gate is orders of magnitude more efficient than the current technology. Credit: Jung-Tsung Shen

An efficient two-bit quantum logic gate has been out of reach, until now.

Research from the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis has found a missing piece in the puzzle of optical quantum computing.

Jung-Tsung Shen, associate professor in the Preston M. Green Department of Electrical & Systems Engineering, has developed a deterministic, high-fidelity two-bit quantum logic gate that takes advantage of a new form of light. This new logic gate is orders of magnitude more efficient than the current technology.

In the ideal case, the fidelity can be as high as 97%, Shen said.

His research was published in May 2021 in the journalPhysical Review A.

The potential of quantum computers is bound to the unusual properties of superposition the ability of a quantum system to contain many distinct properties, or states, at the same time and entanglement two particles acting as if they are correlated in a non-classical manner, despite being physically removed from each other.

Where voltage determines the value of a bit (a 1 or a 0) in a classical computer, researchers often use individual electrons as qubits, the quantum equivalent. Electrons have several traits that suit them well to the task: they are easily manipulated by an electric or magnetic field and they interact with each other. Interaction is a benefit when you need two bits to be entangled letting the wilderness of quantum mechanics manifest.

But their propensity to interact is also a problem. Everything from stray magnetic fields to power lines can influence electrons, making them hard to truly control.

For the past two decades, however, some scientists have been trying to use photons as qubits instead of electrons. If computers are going to have a true impact, we need to look into creating the platform using light, Shen said.

Photons have no charge, which can lead to the opposite problems: they do not interact with the environment like electrons, but they also do not interact with each other. It has also been challenging to engineer and to create ad hoc (effective) inter-photon interactions. Or so traditional thinking went.

Less than a decade ago, scientists working on this problem discovered that, even if they werent entangled as they entered a logic gate, the act of measuring the two photons when they exited led them to behave as if they had been.The unique features of measurement are another wild manifestation of quantum mechanics.

Quantum mechanics is not difficult, but its full of surprises, Shen said.

The measurement discovery was groundbreaking, but not quite game-changing. Thats because for every 1,000,000 photons, only one pair became entangled. Researchers have since been more successful, but, Shen said, Its still not good enough for a computer, which has to carry out millions to billions of operations per second.

Shen was able to build a two-bit quantum logic gate with such efficiency because of the discovery of a new class of quantum photonic states photonic dimers, photons entangled in both space and frequency. His prediction of their existence was experimentally validated in 2013, and he has since been finding applications for this new form of light.

When a single photon enters a logic gate, nothing notable happens it goes in and comes out. But when there are two photons, Thats when we predicted the two can make a new state, photonic dimers. It turns out this new state is crucial.

High-fidelity, two-bit logic gate, designed by Jung-Tsung Shen. Credit: Jung-Tsung Shen

Mathematically, there are many ways to design a logic gate for two-bit operations. These different designs are called equivalent. The specific logic gate that Shen and his research group designed is the controlled-phase gate (or controlled-Z gate). The principal function of the controlled-phase gate is that the two photons that come out are in the negative state of the two photons that went in.

In classical circuits, there is no minus sign, Shen said. But in quantum computing, it turns out the minus sign exists and is crucial.

Quantum mechanics is not difficult, but its full of surprises.

Jung-Tsung Shen

When two independent photons (representing two optical qubits) enter the logic gate, The design of the logic gate is such that the two photons can form a photonic dimer, Shen said. It turns out the new quantum photonic state is crucial as it enables the output state to have the correct sign that is essential to the optical logic operations.

Shen has been working with the University of Michigan to test his design, which is a solid-state logic gate one that can operate under moderate conditions. So far, he says, results seem positive.

Shen says this result, while baffling to most, is clear as day to those in the know.

Its like a puzzle, he said. It may be complicated to do, but once its done, just by glancing at it, you will know its correct.

Reference: Two-photon controlled-phase gates enabled by photonic dimers by Zihao Chen, Yao Zhou, Jung-Tsung Shen, Pei-Cheng Ku and Duncan Steel, 21 May 2021, Physical Review A.DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.103.052610

This research was supported by the National Science Foundation, ECCS grants nos. 1608049 and 1838996. It was also supported by the 2018 NSF Quantum Leap (RAISE) Award.

The McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis promotes independent inquiry and education with an emphasis on scientific excellence, innovation and collaboration without boundaries. McKelvey Engineering has top-ranked research and graduate programs across departments, particularly in biomedical engineering, environmental engineering and computing, and has one of the most selective undergraduate programs in the country. With 140 full-time faculty, 1,387 undergraduate students, 1,448 graduate students and 21,000 living alumni, we are working to solve some of societys greatest challenges; to prepare students to become leaders and innovate throughout their careers; and to be a catalyst of economic development for the St. Louis region and beyond.

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Missing Piece Discovered in the Puzzle of Optical Quantum Computing - SciTechDaily

The U.S. standards and technology authority is searching for a new encryption method to prevent the Internet of Things succumbing to quantum-enabled hackers

As quantum computing moves from academic circles to practical uses, it is expected to become the conduit for cybersecurity breaches.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology aims to nip these malicious attacks preemptively. Its new cybersecurity protocols would help shield networks from quantum computing hacks.

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has consulted with cryptography thought leaders on hardware and software options to migrate existing technologies to post-quantum encryption.

The consultation forms part of a wider national contest, which is due to report back with its preliminary shortlist later this year.

IT pros can download and evaluate the options through the open source repository at NISTs Computer Security Resource Center.

[The message] is to educate the market but also to try to get people to start playing around with [quantum computers] and understanding it because, if you wait until its a Y2K problem, then its too late, said Chris Sciacca, IBMs communications manager for research in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia and South America. So the message here is to start adopting some of these schemes.

Businesses need to know how to contend with quantum decryption, which could potentially jeopardize many Internet of Things (IoT) endpoints.

Quantum threatens society because IoT, in effect, binds our digital and physical worlds together. Worryingly, some experts believe hackers could already be recording scrambled IoT transmissions, to be ready when quantum decryption arrives.

Current protocols such as Transport Layer Security (TLS) will be difficult to upgrade, as they are often baked into the devices circuitry or firmware,

Estimates for when a quantum computer capable of running Shors algorithm vary. An optimist in the field would say it may take 10 to 15 years. But then it could be another Y2K scenario, whose predicted problems never came to pass.

But its still worth getting the enterprises IoT network ready, to be on the safe side.

Broadly speaking, all asymmetric encryption thats in common use today will be susceptible to a future quantum computer with adequate quantum volume, said Christopher Sherman, a senior analyst at Forrester Research, Anything that uses prime factorization or discrete log to create separate encryption and decryption keys, those will all be vulnerable to a quantum computer potentially within the next 15 years.

Why Do We Need Quantum Security?

Quantum computers would answer queries existing technologies cannot resolve, by applying quantum mechanics to compute various combinations of data simultaneously.

As the quantum computing field remains largely in the prototyping phase, current models largely perform only narrow scientific or computational objectives.

All asymmetric cryptography systems, however, could one day be overridden by a quantum mechanical algorithm known as Shors algorithm.

Thats because the decryption ciphers rely on mathematical complexities such as factorization, which Shors could hypothetically unravel in no time.

In quantum physics, what you can do is construct a parameter that cancels some of the probabilities out, explained Luca De Feo, a researcher at IBM who is involved with the NIST quantum-security effort, Shors algorithm is such an apparatus. It makes many quantum particles interact in such a way that the probabilities of the things you are not interested in will cancel out.

Will Quantum Decryption Spell Disaster For IoT?

Businesses must have safeguards against quantum decryption, which threatens IoT endpoints secured by asymmetric encryption.

A symmetric encryption technique, Advanced Encrypton Standard, is believed to be immune to Shors algorithm attacks, but is considered computationally expensive for resource-constrained IoT devices.

For businesses looking to quantum-secure IoT in specific verticals, theres a risk assessment model published by University of Waterloos quantum technology specialist Dr. Michele Mosca. The model is designed to predict the risk and outline times for preparing a response,depending on the kind of organization involved.

As well as integrating a new quantum security standard, theres also a need for mechanisms to make legacy systems quantum-secure. Not only can encryption be broken, but theres also potential for quantum forgeries of digital identities, in sectors such as banking.

I see a lot of banks now asking about quantum security, and definitely governments, Sherman said, They are not just focused on replacing RSA which includes https and TLS but also elliptic curve cryptography (ECC), for example blockchain-based systems. ECC-powered digital signatures will need to be replaced as well.

One option, which NIST is considering, is to blend post-quantum security at network level with standard ciphers on legacy nodes. The latter could then be phased out over time.

A hybrid approach published by NIST guidance around using the old protocols that satisfy regulatory requirements at a security level thats been certified for a given purpose, Sherman said, But then having an encapsulation technique that puts a crypto technique on top of that. It wraps up into that overall encryption scheme, so that in the future you can drop one thats vulnerable and just keep the post-quantum encryption.

Governments Must Defend Against Quantum Hacks

For national governments, its becoming an all-out quantum arms race. And the U.S. may well be losing. Russia and China have both already unveiled initial post-quantum security options, Sherman said.

They finished their competitions over the past couple of years. I wouldnt be surprised if the NIST standard also becomes something that Europe uses, he added.

The threats against IoT devices have only grown more pronounced with current trends.

More virtual health and connected devices deployed in COVID-19, for example, will mean more medical practices are now quantum-vulnerable.

According to analyst firm Omdia, there are three major fault lines in defending the IoT ecosystem: endpoint security, network security and public cloud security. With 46 billion things currently in operation globally, IoT already provides an enlarged attack surface for cybercriminals.

The challenge is protecting any IoT device thats using secure communications or symmetric protocols, said Sherman, Considering that by, 2025 theres over a trillion IoT devices expected to be deployed. Thats obviously quite large in terms of potential exposure. Wherever RSA or TLS is being used with IoT, theres a threat.

Weighing Up Post-Quantum And Quantum Cryptography Methods

Post-quantum cryptography differs from methods such as quantum key distribution (QKD), which use quantum mechanics to secure technology against the coming threat.

QKD is already installed on some government and research communications lines, and hypothetically its impenetrable.

But the average business needs technology that can be implemented quickly and affordably. And, as we dont even know how a quantum decryption device would work in practice, its unrealistic to transfer QKD onto every IoT network.

One of the main post-quantum cryptography standards in the frame is lattice-based cryptography, an approach that is thought to be more resilient against Shors algorithm.

While these are still based on mathematics and could be endangered by future quantum decryption algorithms, they might buy scientists enough time to come up with other economically viable techniques.

Another advantage would be in IoT applications that need the point-to-point security channel, such as connected vehicles, De Feo said.

Probably the lattice-based schemes are the best right now to run on IoT devices. Some efforts will be needed in the chip design process to make these even easier to run, he added, But we should probably start thinking about this right now. Because it will probably take around five-to-seven years after the algorithms have been found for the chips to reach peoples homes or industrial systems.

And then potentially [if the optimistic estimates are right,] quantum computers will have arrived.

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NIST's Quantum Security Protocols Near the Finish Line The U.S. standards and technology authority is searching - IoT World Today

Amira Abbas, research scientist at IBM

Here, Abbas shares more about herself, her achievements, and what made her choose to focus on quantum computing.

Abbas: I feel extremely fortunate because I think I have a super cool role that combines everything I love doing. Im currently a PhD student and my research is directly aligned to the research I do at IBM. In other words, researching for my PhD is my job.

Currently, I spend most of my time trying to figure out how quantum computers can help make artificial intelligence (AI) better. Quantum computers are often viewed as supercomputers that can outperform the computers we use today. But, its actually quite hard to figure out where quantum computers can help us, especially in AI.

I work with the IBM team in Zurich, Switzerland to try and understand this particular problem. I also work with the team in South Africa to teach more people in Africa about quantum computing. I love this balance of research and community work in my role because it requires very different skills and stimulates me in different ways.

Abbas: I grew up in a city called Durban on the east coast of South Africa. I always loved mathematics and used to get really excited as a kid when I saw crazy equations in movies. I would think to myself I wish I could understand those things and do stuff like that. This curiosity and relish to understand mathematics lead me to study actuarial science, which is notoriously heavy on mathematics and statistics.

I then went to work in asset management in Johannesburg for a few years. This was a great learning experience, but I couldnt shake the feeling that something was missing from my life.

Soon after this discovery, I left the financial industry and went back to study a masters in physics specialising in quantum computing. I am now doing my PhD in quantum machine learning and couldnt be happier.

Abbas: I think what excites me most about quantum computing is all the unknowns and things we still have to discover. As a researcher, its a dream to work in a field with so many open questions like how can quantum help AI? How can quantum help Africa and Africa-specific problems? Are quantum techniques even helpful and beneficial to us?

Additionally, there are lots of low-hanging fruit because the field of quantum computing is relatively young and so lots of discoveries are inevitable.

The field itself is also so broad and has attracted a very interesting and diverse community. This makes quantum even more enjoyable - being in a space with cool people and getting to explore fascinating things.

Abbas: I would love to continue to produce high calibre research output in quantum computing.

I want to inspire others to see that it doesnt matter where youre from, what university you are at or what your background is if you believe you can do something meaningful - even in a field as crazy sounding as quantum computing - then you can. It just takes hard work and persistence. So, I just want to keep at it and progress my research career by producing interesting work in the field of quantum computing and AI.

Abbas: In terms of achievements, I think its pretty cool that Im the first African to have received Googles PhD Fellowship award for the category of quantum computing.

I have also placed first at global quantum computing hackathon events, such as the Qiskit Europe Hackathon in 2019 Zurich and the Xanadu Quantum Hackathon in Toronto 2019.

Recently, I was the lead author on a quantum machine learning paper that made the cover of a Nature Research journal.

Otherwise, I have also received multiple scholarship awards and invited speaker requests to numerous quantum and women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics events.

Abbas: My life in a nutshell: Coffee, research, reading, eating and somehow managing to sleep.

My family often say that I work a bit more than the average person, but when youre working on something youre passionate about, it never feels like work and it never feels like enough.

But on weekends, I try to get out into nature as much as possible. Living in South Africa, I am privileged to be able to experience such wonderful outdoor activities and I love hiking.

Abbas: I always say that science and technology is a lot more like art than people realise. Its crucial to grasp for critical thinking, but you have to find what works for you, and its important as a young person to keep in mind that science and technology are extremely broad just because you dont understand one thing, doesnt mean you wont understand everything.

Its also important for our youth to think about what the future holds, for any country, industry or profession and just how advancements in science and technology will affect that.

Luckily we live in a time where we can have access to high-quality research and ideas through our phones. This is how I came across quantum computing which, for example, has the potential to speed up computations used across finance, logistics, healthcare, and more.

We need to foster our skills locally so that our research can contribute to cutting-edge work and allow us to be ahead of the curve, instead of mere consumers of advanced tech/science.

Abbas: Its really easy to develop a mental 'block' against science and technology. Sometimes people become afraid of maths for example if they dont understand it in high school. This was similar to my experience with physics, in fact, physics was my lowest mark in school because I never really understood it. Now Im doing a PhD in physics which I would have thought impossible. The key is to view science and technology as art and find your niche in this very broad space.

As for advice, I strongly believe that all it takes to achieve your goals is consistent hard work and a balanced lifestyle. If youre still figuring out what your passion is, or feeling as if something in your life is missing, keep upskilling yourself and try to read more about things you normally wouldnt. Maybe one day you will come across the thing that makes you tick, and then hard work can be pleasurable if youre working on something aligned to your passion.

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#YouthMatters: IBM's Amira Abbas on quantum computing and AI - Bizcommunity.com

Crdit Agricole CIB with European tech Pasqal and Multiverse Computing announced a partnership to design and implement new approaches running on classical and quantum computers to outperform state of the art algorithms for capital markets and risk management.

International companies and institutions have started investing heavily in quantum technologies. Europe launched the Quantum Flagship Plan in October 2018, and France recently announced a 1.8 billion investment plan.

Quantum computing is likely to profoundly impact multiple industries in the coming years, including finance. Finance has been making substantial use of algorithms requiring advanced mathematics and statistics so far; it is the turn of quantum physics to help solve quantitative financial problems. In addition, quantum theory and technology, assembled in Quantum Computing, start demonstrating promising applications in capital markets and risk management.

Crdit Agricole CIB has teamed up with two quantum technology companies to apply quantum computing to real-world finance applications. French company Pasqal is developing a quantum computer based on neutral atoms arrays, currently being trialled to build industrial quantum computers. Spanish company Multiverse Computing specialises in quantum algorithms which can run both on quantum and classical computers.

Georges-Olivier Reymond, CEO of Pasqal, said: I strongly believe in that partnership to foster the usage of quantum computing for Finance. To our knowledge, it is the first-ever in which all the stakeholders, software developer, hardware provider and end-user are working together on a problem. All the teams are very excited, and this development will be the cornerstone of future industrial applications for neutral atom quantum computers.

Enrique Lizaso, CEO of Multiverse Computing, said: We are thrilled with the opportunity of working together with Credit Agricole CIB and Pasqal in this ambitious project, that will put into production the most advanced tools currently only used in large non-financial institutions in US and China. This is a landmark project in Finance in the world.

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Crdit Agricole CIB partners with Pasqal and Multiverse Computing - IBS Intelligence