Will Quantum Computing Make It Out of the Lab?

alphadogg writes "Researchers have been working on quantum systems for more than a decade, in the hopes of developing super-tiny, super-powerful computers. And while there is still plenty of excitement surrounding quantum computing, significant roadblocks are causing some to question whether quantum computing will ever make it out of the lab. 'Artur Ekert, professor of Quantum Physics, Mathematical Institute at the University of Oxford, says physicists today can only control a handful of quantum bits, which is adequate for quantum communication and quantum cryptography, but nothing more. He notes that it will take a few more domesticated qubits to produce quantum repeaters and quantum memories, and even more to protect and correct quantum data. "Add still a few more qubits, and we should be able to run quantum simulations of some quantum phenomena and so forth. But when this process arrives to 'a practical quantum computer' is very much a question of defining what 'a practical quantum computer' really is. The best outcome of our research in this field would be to discover that we cannot build a quantum computer for some very fundamental reason, then maybe we would learn something new and something profound about the laws of nature," Ekert says.'"

Re:I suspect it will work

[cjonslashdot]

First of all, I must disclose that I cannot speak authoritatively on this. While I know quantum mechanics and nuclear physics, I have never studied the problem of quantum computing. Therefore, take my opinion here on this topic with a grain of salt.

But I must confess that intuitively, it seems improbable. There is no "free lunch". Computing is a process of creating information. There is no shortcut for that. The primary challenge with quantum computing seems to be about maintaining adequate coherence, and I suspect that that maintaining coherence throughout a calculation will be equivalent in some manner to performing the calculation in a linear manner. But time will tell.

Re:Been out of the lab for over a decade now.

[Anonymous Coward]

source?

schizophrenia