On September 10, local time, Microsoft and quantum computing leader Quantinuum announced a major breakthrough. They successfully entangled the largest number of 12 logical qubits ever and achieved the highest computational fidelity ever, showcasing their quantum error correction technology.

Logical qubits, quantum error correction, and computational fidelity are all important concepts in the field of quantum computing. It can be said that quantum error correction is the key to large-scale commercialization of quantum computing.

Quantum computing is a technology that utilizes the principles of quantum mechanics for information processing. Compared to traditional classical computing, quantum computing has several main advantages:

(1) Powerful computational capabilities: Unlike traditional computers that can only process "0" and "1", quantum bits (qubits) can be in a superposition state of "0" and "1" simultaneously. This theoretically allows quantum computers to perform large-scale computations at an extremely fast speed. With an increase in the number of qubits, the computational power of quantum computers grows exponentially. This means that quantum computers are much faster than classical computers when it comes to handling certain types of problems, such as search and optimization problems.

(2) Broader application space: Quantum computers are naturally suitable for simulating other quantum systems, which is of great significance for research in fields such as chemistry, materials science, and physics. It can simulate molecules and chemical reactions, and predict the properties of new materials, which is very difficult for classical computers. In addition, quantum computers can theoretically accelerate the training process of machine learning algorithms, which is very useful for processing big data and complex models, and can drive the development of machine learning and artificial intelligence.

(3) Encryption and security: Quantum computers theoretically have the ability to break many existing encryption algorithms, but they can also develop new quantum encryption technologies to provide higher-level communication security.

Quantum computing has tremendous potential. However, it is still in the early stages of development and faces many technical and physical challenges. One important obstacle is that individual physical qubits are very fragile and susceptible to external environmental interference, and the fidelity of quantum gate operations needs to be very high. Any imperfection can lead to computational errors, making quantum error correction technology crucial.

Logical qubits: Quantum error correction technology for "1+1>2".

Scientists improve the stability and error tolerance of quantum information by introducing logical qubits to overcome the above shortcomings of physical qubits.

Logical qubits are usually encoded by multiple physical qubits through specific quantum error correction codes. This set of physical qubits can protect logical qubits from the impact of local errors. If one of the physical qubits is in error, it can be detected and corrected through the quantum error correction process without affecting the overall state of logical qubits.

In simple terms, logical qubits are a group of qubits composed of multiple physical qubits, and the physical qubits can correct each other's errors to ensure the stability of the entire logical qubits, achieving the effect of "1+1>2". Even if one of the physical qubits is incorrect, the other physical qubits can still provide enough information to ensure the accuracy of the calculation results.

The breakthrough of Microsoft and Quantinuum lies in the increase in the number of logical qubits, establishing a more reliable quantum computing "team", and their quantum error correction technology reduces the error rate of logical qubits by 800 times compared to individual physical qubits. This achievement is a key step for quantum computing to become reliable and practical.

How did Microsoft achieve this?

The new breakthrough is based on two key elements: the H2 ion trap quantum computer as the hardware, and the Azure Quantum qubit virtualization platform as the software.

The H2 ion trap quantum computer is a high-performance quantum computing system developed by Quantinuum. This quantum computer uses Microsoft's Tesseract code, a fault-tolerant mechanism for quantum computing, which protects quantum information using a special quantum error correction code (The Tesseract code is essentially a four-dimensional hypercube structure, which arranges 16 physical qubits into a four-dimensional space to protect the logical qubits). This code sacrifices some efficiency, greatly improves error correction performance, and can effectively detect and correct errors in the qubits.

Azure Quantum's virtualization platform for quantum bits is a quantum cloud computing service provided by Microsoft. Its aim is to enhance hardware stability and accuracy through software, and dynamically manage the collaboration between multiple physical quantum bits to ensure the stability of logical quantum bits. This effectively coordinates the operation of physical quantum bits and reduces the probability of errors.

For the first time, quantum computing, AI, and HPC collaborate to solve scientific problems.

It is worth noting that Microsoft and Quantinuum's breakthrough is not limited to theory, but also takes into account the application side, demonstrating the ability of quantum computing to solve practical problems.

Researchers have combined high-reliability logical quantum bits, cloud computing, and AI technology to perform complex chemical simulations and successfully predict the ground state energy of a chemical catalyst. This simulation is almost impossible for traditional computers, as it requires handling extremely complex computational tasks.

According to Microsoft, this is the first time that HPC, AI, and quantum computing hardware have been combined to solve scientific problems.

It can be foreseen that quantum computing will greatly shorten the time required for scientific discoveries, new products, and even the birth of new species.

Currently, Microsoft is actively promoting the commercialization of quantum computing and providing quantum computing services to the outside world through the Azure Quantum platform. Users can obtain solutions from quantum computing companies such as Quantinuum, IonQ, PASQAL, and Rigetti through this platform.

The domestic quantum computing industry is expected to continue to expand.

IBM, Microsoft, Google and other overseas technology giants are deeply involved in quantum computing, releasing roadmaps one after another. At the same time, the domestic quantum computing industry has made continuous breakthroughs in recent years.

Dilution refrigerators play a crucial role in the operation of superconducting quantum computers. The SL400 domestic dilution refrigerator is a major breakthrough in the ultra-low temperature refrigeration technology of quantum computing by a Chinese technology innovation company for the first time, and its performance indicators have reached the advanced level of similar international products.

On April 25th, the Institute of Quantum Information and Quantum Technology Innovation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences delivered a 504-qubit superconducting quantum computing chip, named 'Xiaohong', to QuantumCTek Co., Ltd. This chip is the first domestic superconducting quantum computing chip with more than 500 qubits, breaking the domestic record of superconducting quantum qubit quantity, and its performance is comparable to mainstream international chips. It can efficiently carry out research on practical problems and algorithms in various fields for users.

The third-generation self-developed superconducting quantum computer 'Bengyuan Wukong' of Bengyuan Quantum began operating online and opened to users worldwide on January 6th this year. This quantum computer is equipped with a 72-qubit self-developed superconducting quantum chip called 'Wukong', and it is currently the most advanced programmable and deliverable superconducting quantum computer in China.

In the field of biomedical science, China's quantum computing technology has also made significant breakthroughs. Recently, Bengbu Medical University reached a strategic cooperation with Bengyuan Quantum Technology (Hefei) Co., Ltd., and the two parties will jointly develop the first domestic quantum molecular docking application. With the help of China's third-generation self-developed superconducting quantum computer, the research and development process of small molecule drugs can be accelerated and the efficiency of drug design can be improved.

In addition, China has been issuing frequent quantum computing-related policies. In March of this year, quantum computing was first included in the government work report. Subsequently, on July 5th, Minister of Industry and Information Technology, Jing Junhai, further stated that there will be proactive layout in future industries, focusing on areas such as humanoid robots, brain-computer interfaces, metaverse, next-generation internet, 6G, quantum technology, atomic-level manufacturing, deep-sea and aerospace development.

In the future, with the continuous evolution of policies and industry, the domestic quantum computing industry is expected to continue to expand.

Editor/Lambor