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Since the first quantum computers were built in the late 1990s, the field has made some significant breakthroughs. But nearly 3 decades later, quantum hardware that can be manufactured at scale and applied to real-world computing challenges remains elusive.

One startup hoping to address the problem is Oxford Ionics, which recently unveiled a new quantum chip it says can be produced by a standard semiconductor fabrication plant and doesnt require costly error correction techniques.

One of the central challenges of quantum computing is producing high-quality quantum gates at scale.

Like conventional logic gates that form the smallest component of silicon computer chips, quantum gates are the building blocks of quantum circuits. The main difference is that whereas traditional logic gates process information as binary bits (ones and zeros), quantum gates process information in qubits, which can represent a superposition of multiple non-binary states simultaneously.

The new Oxford Ionics chip has set industry records in both two-qubit gate and single-qubit gate performance.

Significantly, the company managed to achieve the breakthrough without relying on the error correction techniques utilized by many of its peers. Error correction can be used to identify and fix errors created by quantum gates high susceptibility to noise. However, it increases the number of qubits needed for any given computation.

Although qubits capacity to transmit far more information than classical bits is what gives all quantum machines their vast computational power, not all qubits are created equal.

To date, major players including IBM, Google and Intel have all thrown their weight behind quantum chips that rely on the properties of superconductors like niobium and tantalum.

But although the most sophisticated quantum computers built so far have been based on superconducting processors, the extremely low temperatures required for operation and the need for significant error correction make current solutions impractical for mass-market applications.

In contrast, devices made with trapped ion-based logic gates have relatively low error rates and can operate at any temperature. But until now, they have required lasers to control qubits.

With its latest chip, Oxford Ionics has eliminated the need for lasers. Without this requirement, future quantum computers built using the startups trapped ion processors could be far more commercially viable than todays machines.

One of the companys first customers to receive the new processor will be the UKs National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC). In February, the NQCC selected Oxford Ionics as one of 7 startups to be part of a 30 million government-funded program to build new quantum computing hardware at its facility in Oxfordshire.

Commenting on the new chips performance results, NQCC Director Dr Michael Cuthbert, said they mark a pivotal step forward in ion trap quantum computing that validates the scalability of the technology.

The reported one and two qubit gate results outperform other players achievements to date, meaning error correction becomes achievable with minimal overheads, he added.

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Oxford Researchers Reveal Pioneering Chip: 3-Year Quantum Mass Production Possible - CCN.com