Demystifying Quantum Computing

What is Quantum Computing?

 

Before we go "Demystifying" it, let's understand what does Quantum  Computing means. Quantum Computing consists of two words "Quantum" which means the smallest possible of unit and "Computing" which means the use of computers to perform calculations and process information.  

Image Source - Google | Image by - Artist's rendition of the Sycamore processor mounted in the cryostat.

 Now the difference between a classical and Quantum Computer lies in how storage of data and the operations performed. In a classical computer data is stored in bits whose value is in the form of bits 0 and 1. In a Quantum Computer the data is stored in the form of Qubits i.e Quantum bit. A Qubit differs from a normal bit from the fact that unlike the normal bit which has two steady states 0 or 1, a Qubit has two quantum states.

This Qubit is defined by a theory known as Quantum Superposition(Sounds a bit too much? we're just getting started...).

 

 

On the basis of this theory, a Qubit is defined by two properties Amplitude and Phase. Amplitude describes the number of each state in a Qubit, while the Phase is a cyclical path represented by a sphere known as a 'Bloch Sphere'. The normal bit in a classical computer has only one property that is Amplitude whose value is set to either 0 or 1. These two values are set at the north and south pole of the Bloch Sphere in a Qubit. It must be noted that the Amplitude of a Qubit is not necessarily 0 or 1 but it can ambiguous. This is because the Amplitude in a Qubit is a complex number. The ambiguity arises from the fact that a complex number such as square root of -1 (yes, Qubits can assume negative values) has two parts the real part and the imaginary part. Hence Qubits can be represented on any part of the Bloch Sphere and bits are constrained to the north and south pole.    

Image Source - Google | Image by -Rudolf Muradian

So, this is the fundamental difference between between classical computing and Quantum Computing. All the other stuff works the same more or less but with exponentially better performance.(better CPU cores, serial bus, drives, minute chips etc).

 

Who developed Quantum Computing?

 

David Deutsch a theoretical physicist from Oxford University is credited as the 'Father of Quantum Computing'. The first Quantum Computer was invented by Issac Chuang of Los Alamos National Laboratory and Neil Gershenfeld of Massachusetts Institute of Technology along with Mark Kubinec of University of California at Berkeley. The first company to sell Quantum Computers is D-Wave Systems. Google, IBM and NASA are among the large corporations that are currently in the business of groundbreaking research in the field on Quantum Computing.

 

Applications of Quantum Computing

 

Artificial Intelligence: 

Now you may ask the question that classical computers can perform AI related operations, what's wrong with that? Well my answer is nothing much, except that for some operations and applications it may take redundant amount of time to provide solutions Quantum Computing can reduce the Burst time of processes significantly. Scientists from Google and NASA reported that Quantum Computers are able to solve problems in around 1 second for which a classical computer might take a classical computer 10,000 years to solve. This was possible using a 84 qubit Quantum Computer developed by D-Wave.

 

Computational Chemistry:

Due to its quantum nature Quantum Computers are able to map even the smallest possible molecules present in various compounds and elements. This is assists in pharmaceutical drug discovery and also to understand how the smallest molecular changes can make a significant impact organisms.

 

Cybersecurity & Cryptography:

Data security is an important issue faced by many industries Machine Learning assisted Quantum encryption can help secure passwords that are nearly impossible to decipher (Well theoretically someone can decrypt your quantum encrypted password by means of a Quantum Computer but he must have knowledge of your algorithm. So you should probably safeguard your algorithm).

 

Financial Modelling: 

This shouldn't come as a surprise, after all we all know people keeping an eye at stock charts and graphs and numbers on God knows how many screens at a time. All of this can be changed by adopting Quantum Computing technology. Companies could make quick and profitable decisions without all that analysis and auditing. This is a technology you can trust to do your work for you, and make your life a lot easier (Believe me with this tech you will have enough time to spend your money that you earned using it). J.P Morgan Chase and Barclays are just some of the banks that invest in this technology.

 

Weather Forecasting:

 The unforeseen capability of Quantum Computers make it ideal for making Predictions on natural disasters, global warming and dilapidation of natural resources (It's not a bad idea to know when the oil fields will finally dry up and going renewable is the only way). A lot of lives can be saved if we are made aware well in advance that a natural disaster is oncoming

be it floods, earthquakes, wildfires, tornadoes and hurricanes to name a few. 

 

Astrophysics: 

Now this is a niche way of using Quantum Computing. Astrophysics combined with Quantum Computing can answer fundamentally existential questions such as when was the universe evolved?, when did the big bang occur precisely?, where is the universe finally heading towards?, might take many decades or even centuries to answer these questions but making your computers analyze and draw outcomes in a shorter period of time is definitely a step in the right direction.

 

Quantum Computers Today

 

Image Source - Google | Image by -Wikipedia

A lot of the stuff that I wrote above is likely to materialize in the next decades or so (but definitely in this century). Right now, the only people buying Quantum Computers (prototypes) are large corporations and few cutting-edge research Institutions for realizing the potential of this futuristic technology. For civilian or even current development projects have to wait for a few years. Besides the intelligence necessary to work on it and the sheer amount of capital that is required for doing research can't be afforded by many countries. It is to be noted that many developing countries have few and inadequate Supercomputers, this does create a hindrance for advancement. However, I am very optimistic as a lot of multidisciplinary and multinational approach is devoted by scientists for the development of Quantum Computing. And with highly concerted efforts it might be the colossal breakthrough of this century.