DUBLIN, April 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Quantum Computing Market by Technology, Infrastructure, Services, and Industry Verticals 2022 - 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Research and Markets Logo

This report assesses the technology, companies/organizations, R&D efforts, and potential solutions facilitated by quantum computing.

The report provides global and regional forecasts as well as the outlook for quantum computing impact on infrastructure including hardware, software, applications, and services from 2022 to 2027. This includes the quantum computing market across major industry verticals.

Quantum Computing Industry Impact

The implications for data processing, communications, digital commerce and security, and the internet as a whole cannot be overstated as quantum computing is poised to radically transform the ICT sector. In addition, quantum computing will disrupt entire industries ranging from government and defense to logistics and manufacturing. No industry vertical will be immune to the potential impact of quantum computing. Every industry must pay great attention to technology developments, implementation, integration, and market impacts.

Quantum Computing Technology Development

While there is great promise for quantum computing, it remains largely in the research and development (R&D) stage as companies, universities, and research organizations seek to solve some of the practical problems for commercialization such as how to keep a qubit stable. The stability problem is due to molecules always being in motion, even if that motion is merely a small vibration. When qubits are disturbed, a condition referred to as decoherence occurs, rendering computing results unpredictable or even useless. One of the potential solutions is to use super-cooling methods such as cryogenics.

Some say there is a need to reach absolute zero (the temperature at which all molecular motion ceases), but that is a theoretical temperature that is practically impossible to reach and maintain, requiring enormous amounts of energy. There are some room-temperature quantum computers in R&D using photonic qubits, but nothing is yet scalable. Some experts say that if the qubit energy level is high enough, cryogenic type cooling is not a requirement.

Alternatives include ion trap quantum computing and other methods to achieve very cold super-cooled small-scale demonstration level computing platforms. There are additional issues involved with implementing and operating quantum computing. In terms of maintenance, quantum systems must be kept at subzero temperatures to keep the qubits stable, which creates trouble for people working with them and expensive, energy-consuming equipment to support.

Story continues

Once these issues are overcome, we anticipate that quantum computing will become more mainstream for solving specific types of problems. However, there will remain general-purpose computing problems that must be solved with classical computing. In fact, we anticipate development of solutions that involve quantum and classical CPUs on the same computing platform, which will be capable of solving combined general purpose and use case-specific computation problems.

These next-generation computing systems will provide the best of both worlds, which will be high-speed, general-purpose computing combined with use case-specific ultra-performance for certain tasks that will remain outside the range of binary computation for the foreseeable future.

Select Report Findings:

The global market for QC hardware will exceed $8.3 billion by 2027

Leading application areas are simulation, optimization, and sampling

Managed services will reach $298 million by 2027 with CAGR of 43.9%

Key professional services will be deployment, maintenance, and consulting

QC based on superconducting (cooling) loops tech will reach $3.7B by 2027

Fastest growing industry verticals will be government, energy, and transportation

Key Topics Covered:

1.0 Executive Summary

2.0 Introduction2.1 Understanding Quantum Computing2.2 Quantum Computer Types2.2.1 Quantum Annealer2.2.2 Analog Quantum2.2.3 Universal Quantum2.3 Quantum Computing vs. Classical Computing2.3.1 Will Quantum replace Classical Computing?2.3.2 Physical Qubits vs. Logical Qubits2.4 Quantum Computing Development Timeline2.5 Quantum Computing Market Factors2.6 Quantum Computing Development Progress2.6.1 Increasing the Number of Qubits2.6.2 Developing New Types of Qubits2.7 Quantum Computing Patent Analysis2.8 Quantum Computing Regulatory Analysis2.9 Quantum Computing Disruption and Company Readiness

3.0 Technology and Market Analysis3.1 Quantum Computing State of the Industry3.2 Quantum Computing Technology Stack3.3 Quantum Computing and Artificial Intelligence3.4 Quantum Neurons3.5 Quantum Computing and Big Data3.6 Linear Optical Quantum Computing3.7 Quantum Computing Business Model3.8 Quantum Software Platform3.9 Application Areas3.10 Emerging Revenue Sectors3.11 Quantum Computing Investment Analysis3.12 Quantum Computing Initiatives by Country

4.0 Quantum Computing Drivers and Challenges4.1 Quantum Computing Market Dynamics4.2 Quantum Computing Market Drivers4.2.1 Growing Adoption in Aerospace and Defense Sectors4.2.2 Growing investment of Governments4.2.3 Emergence of Advance Applications4.3 Quantum Computing Market Challenges

5.0 Quantum Computing Use Cases5.1 Quantum Computing in Pharmaceuticals5.2 Applying Quantum Technology to Financial Problems5.3 Accelerate Autonomous Vehicles with Quantum AI5.4 Car Manufacturers using Quantum Computing5.5 Accelerating Advanced Computing for NASA Missions

6.0 Quantum Computing Value Chain Analysis6.1 Quantum Computing Value Chain Structure6.2 Quantum Computing Competitive Analysis6.2.1 Leading Vendor Efforts6.2.2 Start-up Companies6.2.3 Government Initiatives6.2.4 University Initiatives6.2.5 Venture Capital Investments6.3 Large Scale Computing Systems

7.0 Company Analysis7.1 D-Wave Systems Inc.7.2 Google Inc.7.3 Microsoft Corporation7.4 IBM Corporation7.5 Intel Corporation7.6 Nokia Corporation7.7 Toshiba Corporation7.8 Raytheon Company7.9 Other Companies7.9.1 1QB Information Technologies Inc.7.9.2 Cambridge Quantum Computing Ltd.7.9.3 QC Ware Corp.7.9.4 MagiQ Technologies Inc.7.9.5 Rigetti Computing7.9.6 Anyon Systems Inc.7.9.7 Quantum Circuits Inc.7.9.8 Hewlett Packard Enterprise7.9.9 Fujitsu Ltd.7.9.10 NEC Corporation7.9.11 SK Telecom7.9.12 Lockheed Martin Corporation7.9.13 NTT Docomo Inc.7.9.14 Alibaba Group Holding Limited7.9.15 Booz Allen Hamilton Inc.7.9.16 Airbus Group7.9.17 Amgen Inc.7.9.18 Biogen Inc.7.9.19 BT Group7.9.20 Mitsubishi Electric Corp.7.9.21 Volkswagen AG7.9.22 KPN7.10 Ecosystem Contributors7.10.1 Agilent Technologies7.10.2 Artiste-qb.net7.10.3 Avago Technologies7.10.4 Ciena Corporation7.10.5 Eagle Power Technologies Inc7.10.6 Emcore Corporation7.10.7 Enablence Technologies7.10.8 Entanglement Partners7.10.9 Fathom Computing7.10.10 Alpine Quantum Technologies GmbH7.10.11 Atom Computing7.10.12 Black Brane Systems7.10.13 Delft Circuits7.10.14 EeroQ7.10.15 Everettian Technologies7.10.16 EvolutionQ7.10.17 H-Bar Consultants7.10.18 Horizon Quantum Computing7.10.19 ID Quantique7.10.20 InfiniQuant7.10.21 IonQ7.10.22 ISARA7.10.23 KETS Quantum Security7.10.24 Magiq7.10.25 MDR Corporation7.10.26 Nordic Quantum Computing Group7.10.27 Oxford Quantum Circuits7.10.28 Post-Quantum (PQ Solutions)7.10.29 ProteinQure7.10.30 PsiQuantum7.10.31 Q&I7.10.32 Qasky7.10.33 QbitLogic7.10.34 Q-Ctrl7.10.35 Qilimanjaro Quantum Hub7.10.36 Qindom7.10.37 Qnami7.10.38 QSpice Labs7.10.39 Qu & Co7.10.40 Quandela7.10.41 Quantika7.10.42 Quantum Benchmark Inc.7.10.43 Quantum Circuits Inc.7.10.44 Quantum Factory GmbH7.10.45 QuantumCTek7.10.46 Quantum Motion Technologies7.10.47 QuantumX7.10.48 Qubitekk7.10.49 Qubitera LLC7.10.50 Quintessence Labs7.10.51 Qulab7.10.52 Qunnect7.10.53 QuNu Labs7.10.54 River Lane Research7.10.55 SeeQC7.10.56 Silicon Quantum Computing7.10.57 Sparrow Quantum7.10.58 Strangeworks7.10.59 Tokyo Quantum Computing7.10.60 TundraSystems Global Ltd.7.10.61 Turing7.10.62 Xanadu7.10.63 Zapata Computing7.10.64 Accenture7.10.65 Atos Quantum7.10.66 Baidu7.10.67 Northrop Grumman7.10.68 Quantum Computing Inc.7.10.69 Keysight Technologies7.10.70 Nano-Meta Technologies7.10.71 Optalysys Ltd.

8.0 Quantum Computing Market Analysis and Forecasts 2022 - 20278.1.1 Quantum Computing Market by Infrastructure8.1.2 Quantum Computing Market by Technology Segment8.1.3 Quantum Computing Market by Industry Vertical8.1.4 Quantum Computing Market by Region

9.0 Conclusions and Recommendations

10.0 Appendix: Quantum Computing and Classical HPC

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/6yf53

Media Contact:

Research and MarketsLaura Wood, Senior Managerpress@researchandmarkets.com

For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900

U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

Cision

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-quantum-computing-market-assessment-2022-2027-growing-adoption-in-aerospace-and-defense-growing-investment-of-governments--emergence-of-advance-applications-301534128.html

SOURCE Research and Markets

Read more:
Global Quantum Computing Market Assessment 2022-2027: Growing Adoption in Aerospace and Defense, Growing investment of Governments, & Emergence of...

It is true that adversaries are collecting our encrypted data today so they can decrypt it later. In essence anything sent using PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) today may very well be decrypted when quantum computing becomes available. Our recent report identifies the risk to account numbers and other long tail data (data that still has high value 5 years or more into the future). Data you send today using traditional PKI is the horse that left the barn.

But this article describes a scary scenario where an adversarys quantum computer hacks the US militarys communications and utilizes that advantage to sink the US Fleet but that is highly unlikely as long as government agencies follow orders. The US government specifies that AES-128 be used for secret (unclassified) information and AES-256 for top secret (classified) information. While AES-128 can be cracked using quantum computers, one estimate suggests that would take 6 months of computing time. That would be very expensive. Most estimates indicate that using AES-256 would take hundreds of years, but the military is already planning an even safer alternative it just isnt yet in production (that I am aware of):

Arthur Herman conducted two formidable studies on what a single, successful quantum computing attack would do to both our banking systems and a major cryptocurrency. A single attack on the banking system by a quantum computer would take down Fedwire and cause $2 trillion of damage in a very short period of time. A similar attack on a cryptocurrency like bitcoin would cause a 90 percent drop in price and would start a three-year recession in the United States. Both studies were backed up by econometric models using over 18,000 data points to predict these cascading failures.

Another disastrous effect could be that an attacker with a CRQC could take control of any systems that rely on standard PKI. So, by hacking communications, they would be able to disrupt data flows so that the attacker could take control of a device, crashing it into the ground or even using it against an enemy. Think of the number of autonomous vehicles that we are using both from a civilian and military standpoint. Any autonomous devices such as passenger cars, military drones, ships, planes, and robots could be hacked by a CRQC and shut down or controlled to perform activities not originally intended by the current users or owners.

Overview byTim Sloane,VP, Payments Innovation at Mercator Advisory Group

Read more from the original source:
Quantum Isnt Armageddon; But Your Horse Has Already Left the Barn - PaymentsJournal

Can quantum computing hold the ultimate power to meet sustainable development?

Quantum computing has started gaining popularity with the integration of quantum mechanics through smart quantum computers. Yes, it can transform conventional computers with a highly complex nature. Meanwhile, quantum computing is ready to have the key to protecting the environment with technology. Lets celebrate Earth Day 2022 with sustainable development through quantum computing. Quantum computers hold the substantial potential to save the environment with technology and physics law. Thus, lets dig deeper into quantum computing to look out for ways how it holds the key to protecting the environment.

Earth Day 2022 is celebrated across the world to raise the awareness of environmental issues to human beings. It helps to come up with ideas to reduce the carbon footprint and energy consumption for effective sustainable development. Hence, quantum computing is determined to be the protector of the environment with technology to look out for sustainable development efficiently and effectively.

Quantum computers are a form of supercomputers with thousands of GPU and CPU cores with multiple high degrees of complex issues. It is used for performing multiple quantum calculations with Qubits for simulating the problems that human beings or classical computers cannot solve within a short period of time.

Now in the 21st century with the advancements in technologies, quantum computing can power sustainable development with smart functionalities. Quantum computers can protect the environment with technology by capturing carbon as well as fighting climate change for global warming.

Quantum computing can simulate large complicated molecules which can discover new catalysts for capturing sufficient carbon from the current environment. The room-temperature superconductors hold the key to decreasing the 10% of energy production that is lost in transmission. It will help in better processes to feed the increasing population as well as efficient batteries.

Quantum computing is set to address global challenges, raise awareness, generate solutions, and meet the sustainable development goals on Earth Day 2022. Quantum computers are transforming the illusion into reality with better climate models to protect the environment with technology. It is ready to provide sufficient in-depth insights into how the ways and activities of human beings are drastically affecting the environment and creating a barrier to sustainable development.

Multiple 200 Qubits quantum computers can help to find a catalyst to utilize the 3-5% of the worlds gas production as well as 1-2% of annual energy levels through multiple different tasks. It can be used to generate different catalysts for capturing carbon footprint from the air and decreasing carbon emissions by 80%-90%. Thus, quantum computing can control the rapid rise in temperature in the environment with technology.

That being said, lets celebrate Earth Day 2022 with quantum computing helping the world in ensuring carbon dioxide recycling and reducing harmful emissions of carbon monoxide.

Share This ArticleDo the sharing thingy

About AuthorMore info about author

Read more:
Earth Day 2022: Quantum Computing has the Key to Protect Environment! - Analytics Insight

Members of Netherlands Delft Quantum Ecosystem Receive 550,000 ($594K USD) in Two R&D Grants

The first grant was for an amount of 350,000 and was provided by the Province of South Holland. It was given to a research collaboration consisting of collaboration between Orange Quantum Systems, Delft Circuits, and Leiden Cryogenics which are researching the practical application of quantum technology. The second grant was in the amount of 200,000 and was provided to the ImpaQT initiative by Metropolitan Region Rotterdam The Hagueand the Province of South Holland. The ImpaQT initiative is working to provide a value chain consisting of componentsd and related services for organizations wishing to build their own quantum computer using components provides by the members of the ImpaQT initiative. Members of the ImpaQT consortium include QuantWare,Demcon,Qu&Co,Orange Quantum Systems,Qblox,andDelft Circuits.Additional information about these grants and the associated programs can be seen in a news release provided by Quantum Delft available here.

April 25, 2022

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Go here to see the original:
Members of Netherland's Delft Quantum Ecosystem Receive 550000 ($594K USD) in Two R&D Grants - Quantum Computing Report

Joint effort will establish quantum innovation accelerator in Singapore

SANTA ROSA, Calif., April 27, 2022--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: KEYS), a leading provider of advanced design and validation solutions, and Singapores Quantum Engineering Programme (QEP) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate in accelerating research, development and education in quantum technologies.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220427005691/en/

National University of Singapore (NUS), Quantum Engineering Programme (QEP) and Keysight MOU signing ceremony. From left to right; Dr. Chen Guan Yow, Vice President and Head (New Businesses), Economic Development Board; Mr. Quek Gim Pew, Co-chair, QEP Steering Committee & Senior R&D Consultant for Ministry of Defence; Professor Chen Tsuhan, Deputy President (Research and Technology), NUS; Mr. Oh Sang Ho, Director of Keysight South Asia Pacific Regional Sales; Mr. Gooi Soon Chai, President of Keysight Order Fulfilment and Digital Operations & Keysight Senior Vice President; and Mr. Tan Boon Juan, Vice President & General Manager of Keysight General Electronics Measurement Solutions. (Photo: Business Wire)

The QEP was launched in 2018 by the National Research Foundation, Singapore (NRF) and hosted at the National University of Singapore (NUS), with the aim of supporting quantum technologies research and ecosystem building. The programme funds projects in quantum computing, quantum communication and security, quantum sensing, as well as a quantum foundry, that are expected to lead to practical uses.

Keysight is well positioned to provide modular and scalable quantum control systems, by leveraging the companys expertise in advanced measurement equipment, qubit control solutions and precise measurement instrumentation, which enable researchers to engineer and perhaps scale next-generation systems to harness the power of quantum computing and other quantum devices.

Story continues

"Its going to take a team effort to deliver on the promise of quantum technologies, whether that is better computing performance or more secure communication. We are glad to have Keysight join the partners of the Quantum Engineering Programme to support this work in Singapore," said Alexander Ling, director of the QEP. He is also an associate professor in the NUS Department of Physics and Principal Investigator at the Centre for Quantum Technologies.

Under the MOU, QEP and Keysight will closely cooperate in the development of quantum instrument packages, as well as the technologies that enable quantum systems to be scalable and deployable. In addition, they will establish a programme named "Quantum Joint Innovation Accelerator" that makes it easy for researchers participating in QEP to access several of Keysights software design tools and advanced test and measurement equipment. Researchers can apply to evaluate Keysight measurement tools in their laboratories and access equipment hosted at Keysights premises in Singapore.

"We're pleased to support QEP with quantum test solutions based on our expertise in advanced measurement and quantum engineering technologies," said Sang Ho Oh, general director for South Asia-Pacific at Keysight Technologies. "As the quantum ecosystem continues to build, Keysight will contribute solutions that will enable the Singapore ecosystem to accelerate the research, development and education of quantum technologies."

"Keysight and QEP will establish a collaborative framework to accelerate research and development in the emerging quantum technology ecosystem," said BJ Tan, vice president and general manager of Keysights general electronics measurement solutions. "Having this leading research partnership upstream will open up new frontiers and developments, which will propel industry innovations for years to come."

About the Quantum Engineering Programme (QEP)

The Quantum Engineering Programme (QEP) in Singapore will apply quantum technologies for solving user-defined problems, by funding research and supporting ecosystem building. Its work is focused over four pillars: quantum sensing, quantum communication and security, quantum computing and the establishment of a National Quantum Fabless Foundry. The programme was launched in 2018 by the National Research Foundation, Singapore, and is hosted by the National University of Singapore (NUS). More information is available at qepsg.org.

About National University of Singapore (NUS)

The National University of Singapore (NUS) is Singapores flagship university, which offers a global approach to education, research and entrepreneurship, with a focus on Asian perspectives and expertise. We have 17 faculties across three campuses in Singapore, with more than 40,000 students from 100 countries enriching our vibrant and diverse campus community. We have also established our NUS Overseas Colleges programme in more than 15 cities around the world.

Our multidisciplinary and real-world approach to education, research and entrepreneurship enables us to work closely with industry, governments and academia to address crucial and complex issues relevant to Asia and the world. Researchers in our faculties, 30 university-level research institutes, research centres of excellence and corporate labs focus on themes that include energy; environmental and urban sustainability; treatment and prevention of diseases; active ageing; advanced materials; risk management and resilience of financial systems; Asian studies; and Smart Nation capabilities such as artificial intelligence, data science, operations research and cybersecurity.

For more information on NUS, please visit https://www.nus.edu.sg/

About Keysight Technologies

Keysight delivers advanced design and validation solutions that help accelerate innovation to connect and secure the world. Keysights dedication to speed and precision extends to software-driven insights and analytics that bring tomorrows technology products to market faster across the development lifecycle, in design simulation, prototype validation, automated software testing, manufacturing analysis, and network performance optimization and visibility in enterprise, service provider and cloud environments. Our customers span the worldwide communications and industrial ecosystems, aerospace and defense, automotive, energy, semiconductor and general electronics markets. Keysight generated revenues of $4.9B in fiscal year 2021. For more information about Keysight Technologies (NYSE: KEYS), visit us at http://www.keysight.com.

More information about Keysights involvement in the emerging technologies of quantum computing can be found at https://www.keysight.com/us/en/solutions/emerging-technologies/quantum-solutions.html.

Additional information about Keysight Technologies is available in the newsroom at https://www.keysight.com/go/news and on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220427005691/en/

Contacts

QEP CONTACT:Jenny Hogan+65 65164302jenny.hogan@nus.edu.sg

KEYSIGHT TECHNOLOGIES CONTACTS:Geri Lynne LaCombe, Americas/Europe+1 303 662 4748geri_lacombe@keysight.com

Fusako Dohi, Asia+81 42 660-2162fusako_dohi@keysight.com

Excerpt from:
Keysight and Singapores Quantum Engineering Programme to Accelerate Research, Development and Education in Quantum Technologies - Yahoo Finance

Artist Impression of a superconducting chip. Credit: TU Delft

Associate professor Mazhar Ali and his research group at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) have discovered one-way superconductivity without magnetic fields, something that was thought to be impossible ever since its discovery in 1911 until now. The discovery, published in the journal Nature, makes use of 2D quantum materials and paves the way toward superconducting computing. Superconductors can make electronics hundreds of times faster, all with zero energy loss.

Ali: If the 20th century was the century of semiconductors, the 21st can become the century of the superconductor.

Throughout the twentieth century, many scientists, including Nobel laureates, struggled over the nature of superconductivity, which was discovered in 1911 by Dutch physicist Kamerlingh Onnes. In superconductors, a current flows across a wire with no resistance, which means inhibiting this current or even blocking it is hardly possible let alone getting the current to flow only one way and not the other. The fact that Alis group was able to make superconducting one-directional which is required for computing is remarkable: its like inventing a special type of ice that has zero friction one way but insurmountable friction the other.

The advantages of applying superconductors to electronics are twofold. Superconductors can make electronics hundreds of times faster, and incorporating superconductors into our daily lives would make IT much more eco-friendly: if you spun a superconducting wire from here to the moon, it would transport the energy without any loss. For instance, the use of superconductors instead of regular semiconductors might save up to 10% of all western energy reserves according to NWO.

According to the Dutch Research Council (NWO), using superconductors instead of conventional semiconductors might save up to 10% of all Western energy reserves.

In the 20th century and beyond, no one could tackle the barrier of making superconducting electrons go in just one-direction, which is a fundamental property needed for computing and other modern electronics (consider for example diodes that go one way as well). In normal conduction the electrons fly around as separate particles; in superconductors they move in pairs of twos, without any loss of electrical energy. In the 70s, scientists at IBM tried out the idea of superconducting computing but had to stop their efforts: in their papers on the subject, IBM mentions that without non-reciprocal superconductivity, a computer running on superconductors is impossible.

Superconductivity is a set of physical properties seen in some materials in which electrical resistance disappears and magnetic flux fields are expelled. A superconductor is any substance that possesses these qualities.

Q: Why, when one-way direction works with normal semi-conduction, has one-way superconductivity never worked before?

Mazhar Ali: Electrical conduction in semiconductors, like Si, can be one-way because of a fixed internal electric dipole, so a net built in potential they can have. The textbook example is the famous pn junction; where we slap together two semiconductors: one has extra electrons (-) and the other has extra holes (+). The separation of charge makes a net built-in potential that an electron flying through the system will feel. This breaks symmetry and can result in one-way properties because forward vs backward, for example, are no longer the same. There is a difference in going in the same direction as the dipole vs going against it; similar to if you were swimming with the river or swimming up the river.

Superconductors never had an analog of this one-directional idea without magnetic field; since they are more related to metals (i.e. conductors, as the name says) than semiconductors, which always conduct in both directions and dont have any built-in potential. Similarly, Josephson Junctions (JJs), which are sandwiches of two superconductors with non-superconducting, classical barrier materials in-between the superconductors, also havent had any particular symmetry-breaking mechanism that resulted in a difference between forward and backward.

Q: How did you manage to do what first seemed impossible?

Ali: It was really the result of one of my groups fundamental research directions. In what we call Quantum Material Josephson Junctions (QMJJs), we replace the classical barrier material in JJs with a quantum material barrier, where the quantum materials intrinsic properties can modulate the coupling between the two superconductors in novel ways. The Josephson Diode was an example of this: we used the quantum material Nb3Br8, which is a 2D material like graphene that has been theorized to host a net electric dipole, as our quantum material barrier of choice and placed it between two superconductors.

We were able to peel off just a couple atomic layers of this Nb3Br8 and make a very, very thin sandwich just a few atomic layers thick which was needed for making the Josephson diode, and was not possible with normal 3D materials. Nb3Br8, is part of a group of new quantum materials being developed by our collaborators, Professor Tyrel McQueens and his group at Johns Hopkins University in the USA, and was a key piece in us realizing the Josephson diode for the first time.

Q: What does this discovery mean in terms of impact and applications?

Ali: Many technologies are based on old versions of JJ superconductors, for example, MRI technology. Also, quantum computing today is based on Josephson Junctions. Technology that was previously only possible using semiconductors can now potentially be made with superconductors using this building block. This includes faster computers, as in computers with up to terahertz speed, which is 300 to 400 times faster than the computers we are now using. This will influence all sorts of societal and technological applications. If the 20th century was the century of semiconductors, the 21st can become the century of the superconductor.

The first research direction we have to tackle for commercial application is raising the operating temperature. Here we used a very simple superconductor that limited the operating temperature. Now we want to work with the known so-called High Tc Superconductors, and see whether we can operate Josephson diodes at temperatures above 77 K, since this will allow for liquid nitrogen cooling. The second thing to tackle is scaling of production. While its great that we proved this works in nanodevices, we only made a handful. The next step will be to investigate how to scale production to millions of Josephson diodes on a chip.

Q: How sure are you of your case?

Ali: There are several steps which all scientists need to take to maintain scientific rigor. The first is to make sure their results are repeatable. In this case we made many devices, from scratch, with different batches of materials, and found the same properties every time, even when measured on different machines in different countries by different people. This told us that the Josephson diode result was coming from our combination of materials and not some spurious result of dirt, geometry, machine or user error or interpretation.

We also carried out smoking gun experiments that dramatically narrows the possibility for interpretation. In this case, to be sure that we had a superconducting diode effect we actually tried switching the diode; as in we applied the same magnitude of current in both forward and reverse directions and showed that we actually measured no resistance (superconductivity) in one direction and real resistance (normal conductivity) in the other direction.

We also measured this effect while applying magnetic fields of different magnitudes and showed that the effect was clearly present at 0 applied field and gets killed by an applied field. This is also a smoking gun for our claim of having a superconducting diode effect at zero-applied field, a very important point for technological applications. This is because magnetic fields at the nanometer scale are very difficult to control and limit, so for practical applications, it is generally desired to operate without requiring local magnetic fields.

Q: Is it realistic for ordinary computers (or even the supercomputers of KNMI and IBM) to make use of superconducting?

Ali: Yes it is! Not for people at home, but for server farms or for supercomputers, it would be smart to implement this. Centralized computation is really how the world works now-a-days. Any and all intensive computation is done at centralized facilities where localization adds huge benefits in terms of power management, heat management, etc. The existing infrastructure could be adapted without too much cost to work with Josephson diode based electronics. There is a very real chance, if the challenges discussed in the other question are overcome, that this will revolutionize centralized and supercomputing!

On May 18th 19th, Professor Mazhar Ali and his collaborators Prof. Valla Fatemi (Cornell University) and Dr. Heng Wu (TU Delft) are hosting a Superconducting Diode Effects Workshop on the Virtual Science Forum, in which 12 international experts in the field will be giving recorded talks online (to be published on YouTube) about the current state of the field as well as future research and development directions.

Reference: The field-free Josephson diode in a van der Waals heterostructure 27 April 2022, Nature.DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-04504-8

Associate professor Mazhar Ali studied at UC Berkeley and Princeton and did his postdoc at IBM and won the Sofia Kovalevskaja Award from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Germany before joining the faculty of Applied Sciences in Delft.

Excerpt from:
Breakthrough Discovery of the One-Way Superconductor Thought To Be Impossible - SciTechDaily