A major problem with quantum computers is memory, as the information they contain can be quickly lost. Quantum computers are not yet fully reliable—they are far too unstable. However, all around the world, people are trying to improve them—some of whom are based in Norway.
"In quantum computers, information is transmitted and stored using so-called qubits (quantum bits). But quantum information can quickly be lost," said Jeroen Danon, a professor at NTNU's Department of Physics.
One of the main problems is that it is difficult to determine how quickly the information is lost.
"In the widely used superconducting qubits, the time it takes for information to disappear is, on average, reasonable. But it seems to vary randomly over time," explained Danon.
So, it is really unfortunate that we do not even have any fast but reliable measurement methods to determine how long it takes before information in qubits is lost. It is, of course, absolutely necessary to resolve this problem to be able to get quantum computers to operate more stably than they currently do.
Now Danon and his colleagues have come up with a solution:
"In collaboration with an international team led by the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen, we have developed a new measurement method. It enables us to measure the time it takes to lose information with unparalleled speed and accuracy," said Danon.
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