放大圖片
■超高速量子電腦可望最快在5年內面世。 資料圖片
憑藉新發明裝置所產生的「糾纏光」,科學界最受推崇的超級快速量子電腦運算技術,現在有機會逐步實現。
只需幾秒 解決疑難
劍橋東芝公司研究中心的科學家說,他們所研發的糾纏光發光二極管,可為超高性能半導體晶片鋪路。理論上,量子電腦能為問題立即找出所有解決方案,並能在幾秒內解決現今最快速電腦需花上幾年才能破解的疑難。
量子力學是在原子、光子和其他粒子層級上看世界,但要運用量子力學的奇特能量知易行難。東芝的希爾茲與同僚相信,他們擁有做到這件事情的關鍵工具。他們發明一個易製的裝備,只要接上電池,就可隨時隨地產生糾纏光。
東芝團隊目前尚未進行運算部分,但希爾茲說,基本的量子計算線路可在5年內準備好。量子電腦是根據光學程序,利用大量糾纏光子,導致光源粒子互相連結,同時在兩種狀態中存在,這種現象被愛因斯坦形容為「可怕」。
外界迄今只能透過笨重的雷射光源產生糾纏光,但東芝的新ELED使用標準半導體科技,並以光學電子產品中常見的材料「砷化鎵」製成。
ELED跟消費性電子產品和現今家居的燈光設備所使用的傳統發光二極管相似,不同的是其中包含一塊非常小的區域稱量子點,可將電流轉化成糾纏光。
量子電腦初期將被應用在解決目前無法處理的問題,如在製藥時做出新的分子模型。 ■路透社 ■羅國偉 資深翻譯員
Toshiba Invention Brings Quantum Computing Closer
Superfast quantum computing, one of the holy grails of science, could be a step closer following the invention of a new device capable of producing so-called "entangled" light on demand.
Scientists at Toshiba Corp's research centre in Cambridge, England, said their Entangled Light Emitting Diode(ELED)opened a path to ultra-powerful semiconductor chips.
Quantum computers would in theory try out many possible solutions to a problem at once and should solve in seconds problems that take today's fastest machines years to crack.
But harnessing the weird powers of quantum physics-which looks at the universe at the level of atoms, photons and other particles-is easier said than done. Now, though, Andrew Shields of Toshiba and colleagues believe they have a key tool for the job in the form of a simple-to-make device, which can be hooked up to a battery to produce entangled light as and when required.
So far, the Toshiba team haven't got to the stage of doing calculations, but Shields thinks basic quantum computing circuits using the technology could be ready in 5 years.
Quantum computers based on optical processes need a large number of entangled photons, where light particles are linked so that they exist in two possible states simultaneously-something Albert Einstein described as spooky.
Until now, making entangled light has only been possible using bulky lasers. But Toshiba's new ELED uses standard semiconductor technology and is made of gallium arsenide, a common material in optical electronics.
It is similar to conventional light emitting diodes used in consumer electronics and modern household lighting, except it contains a tiny region, called a quantum dot, which converts electrical current into entangled light.
Quantum computers are likely to be used initially to solve problems that are otherwise virtually intractable, such as modelling new molecules in pharmaceuticals. ■Reuters
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