Digital Event Horizon
IBM has successfully improved its quantum computing capabilities with a more efficient and less error-prone system that can handle complex calculations. The company's latest achievements demonstrate potential for quantum computing to simulate complex systems and may lead to breakthroughs in scientific research.
IBM's Heron processor now boasts 133 qubits, demonstrating improved performance and reduced errors. The latest Revision 2 of Heron has been optimized to eliminate TLS (two-level system) errors, increasing coherence. The company's rewritten software results in a significant speed-up, allowing for faster calculations. IBM has developed an error mitigation method using intentional noise measurement and algorithmic improvements. The company successfully modeled a simple quantum system (Ising model) with 5,000 individual operations before producing reasonable results. The development of error-corrected quantum computing is still in its early stages, but limited calculations can be performed earlier on.
IBM has made significant strides in its quantum computing capabilities, demonstrating a more efficient and less error-prone system that can handle complex calculations. The company's efforts are focused on improving the performance of smaller processors, such as its Heron processor, which now boasts 133 qubits.
The latest version of Heron, Revision 2, has been optimized to eliminate what are called TLS (two-level system) errors. These defects can resonate at a frequency that interacts with nearby qubits, causing them to drop out of the quantum state needed to participate in calculations. By addressing this issue, IBM aims to increase the coherence of its devices.
In addition to hardware improvements, IBM has also rewritten the software that controls the system during operations. This rewrite has resulted in a dramatic speed-up, allowing for calculations that previously took 122 hours to complete now take only a few hours. The company's researchers have also developed an error mitigation method, which involves intentionally amplifying and measuring the processor's noise at different levels.
These measurements are used to estimate a function that produces similar output to the actual measurements, but with zero noise. This approach is computationally challenging, particularly as the qubit count increases. However, IBM has optimized this method by using algorithmic improvements and the GPU.
The company's latest achievement involves modeling a simple quantum system called an Ising model. The simulation performed 5,000 individual quantum operations (gates) before producing reasonable results. This milestone demonstrates that quantum computing can be used to simulate complex systems, such as the electronic structure of simple chemicals like iron-sulfur compounds.
While IBM is optimistic about its progress, it's essential to note that the development of error-corrected quantum computing remains a subject of ongoing research. The company acknowledges that this technology is still in its early stages and is unlikely to arrive until the end of the decade.
Despite these challenges, IBM believes that limited but useful calculations can be performed earlier on. The company's efforts aim to bridge this gap by improving both the hardware and software aspects of quantum computing. With its Heron processor and rewritten software, IBM has made significant strides in enhancing the capabilities of its quantum computing system.
Related Information:
https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/11/ibm-boosts-the-amount-of-computation-you-can-get-done-on-quantum-hardware/
Published: Wed Nov 13 18:51:35 2024 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
