Researchers at MIT have developed a quantum simulator that can mimic the behavior of materials in the presence of a magnetic field, a crucial step towards discovering new materials for high-performance electronics.
The team, led by Ilan Rosen and William D. Oliver, used a superconducting quantum processor comprising 16 qubits to generate a synthetic electromagnetic field, enabling them to explore complex material properties. By dynamically controlling how the qubits are coupled to each other, they emulated how electrons move between atoms in the presence of an electromagnetic field.
This technique could shed light on key features of electronic systems, such as conductivity, polarization, and magnetization. Companies like IBM and Google are also working on building large-scale digital quantum computers, but this approach uses smaller-scale quantum computers as analog devices to replicate material systems in a controlled environment.
The research, published in Nature Physics, has the potential to lead to breakthroughs in condensed matter physics and the discovery of new materials with unique properties.
Quantum computers have long been touted as a potential game-changer in the field of materials research. By emulating complex materials, researchers can gain a deeper understanding of their physical properties, which could lead to the discovery or design of better semiconductors, insulators, or superconductors. However, some phenomena that occur in materials have proven challenging to mimic using quantum computers, leaving gaps in the problems that scientists have explored with quantum hardware.
To address this limitation, researchers at MIT have developed a technique to generate synthetic electromagnetic fields on superconducting quantum processors. By dynamically controlling how the qubits in their processor are coupled to one another, the team demonstrated the ability to emulate how electrons move between atoms in the presence of an electromagnetic field. This breakthrough has significant implications for materials research, as it enables the study of complex phenomena in condensed matter physics.
Unlike general-purpose digital quantum simulators, which are still in their infancy, analog emulation offers a more immediate and powerful application of quantum hardware. By using qubits as analog devices to replicate a material system in a controlled environment, researchers can intentionally set a starting point and then watch what unfolds as a function of time. This approach has the potential to yield useful results in the near-term, particularly for studying materials.
To synthesize the effects of an electromagnetic field, the MIT team employed a few tricks. They adjusted how adjacent qubits in the processor were coupled to each other by slightly changing the energy of each qubit using different microwave signals. By precisely modulating these energy levels, they enabled photons to hop between qubits in the same complex manner that electrons hop between atoms in a magnetic field.
The researchers undertook several rounds of experiments to determine what energy to set for each qubit, how strongly to modulate them, and the microwave frequency to use. Once they arrived at the right settings, they confirmed that the dynamics of the photons uphold several equations that form the foundation of electromagnetism. They also demonstrated the “Hall effect,” a conduction phenomenon that exists in the presence of an electromagnetic field.
This work opens the door to many potential discoveries. By using this technique to precisely study complex phenomena in condensed matter physics, researchers can gain a deeper understanding of phase transitions that occur when a material changes from a conductor to an insulator. The ability to scan over many materials properties or model parameters without having to physically fabricate a new device each time is a significant advantage of this approach.
The development of synthetic electromagnetic fields on superconducting quantum processors marks a significant milestone in the field of materials research. By leveraging the power of analog emulation, researchers can gain a deeper understanding of complex phenomena in condensed matter physics, which could lead to breakthroughs in the discovery or design of new materials with unique properties. As the field continues to evolve, it is clear that quantum simulation will play an increasingly important role in shaping our understanding of the material world.
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