Researchers Create Silicon-Based Quantum Bit

angry tapir writes "Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia have created the world's first working quantum bit based on a single atom in silicon. The research team was able to both read and write information using the spin, or magnetic orientation, of an electron bound to a single phosphorous atom embedded in a silicon chip. In February, UNSW researchers revealed they had successfully created a single-atom transistor using a single phosphorous atom in a silicon crystal."

Useful links

[hweimer]

Actual research article [nature.com]

Wikipedia article on the architecture proposal [wikipedia.org]

Bit not a Qubit

[Big Hairy Ian]

All this demonstrates is the ability to store 1 bit of information at the atomic level not a Qubit which can be in multiple states at once due to quantum entanglement. This is like heralding the dawn of the computer age by promoting a mechanical calculator.

Re:Bit not a Qubit

[hweimer]

They show relatively clear Rabi oscillations [wikipedia.org], which are a definite proof of the quantumness of the evolution of their system (which has nothing to do with entanglement). So, yes, this is a genuine qubit, albeit not a perfect one.