First simulation of high-energy physics by quantum computer

Discussion in 'Physics & Math' started by Plazma Inferno!, Jun 27, 2016.

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    Physicists have performed the first full simulation of a high-energy physics experiment—the creation of pairs of particles and their antiparticles—on a quantum computer. If the team can scale it up, the technique promises access to calculations that would be too complex for an ordinary computer to deal with.
    The team used a tried-and-tested type of quantum computer in which an electromagnetic field traps four ions in a row, each one encoding a qubit, in a vacuum. They manipulated the ions’ spins—their magnetic orientations—using laser beams. This coaxed the ions to perform logic operations, the basic steps in any computer calculation.
    After sequences of about 100 steps, each lasting a few milliseconds, the team looked at the state of the ions using a digital camera. Each of the four ions represented a location, two for particles and two for antiparticles, and the orientation of the ion revealed whether or not a particle or an antiparticle had been created at that location.
    The team’s quantum calculations confirmed the predictions of a simplified version of quantum electrodynamics, the established theory of the electromagnetic force.

    http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/in-a-first-quantum-computer-simulates-high-energy-physics/
     

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