Quantum Computers Finally Go Head-to-Head

In the red corner, weighing in with just five qubits, a quantum computer from the University of Maryland in College Park. In the blue corner, also with five qubits, its rival from #IBM. Welcome to the first fair #quantumcomputer fight. Researchers have described a series of experiments that, for the first time, saw two quantum computing devices, built using different underlying technologies, run the same algorithms to establish which would win. The qubits—the quantum equivalent of binary bits—in IBM’s chip are made from superconducting metals, while the University of Maryland’s uses electromagnetic fields to trap ytterbium ions.

The experiment was made possible because the two chips, while using different underlying physics, both run algorithms in the same way. And because IBM has opened its chip up, allowing it to be programmed online by researchers, the University of Maryland team was able to give it the same challenge as its own device.

Ultimately, the IBM device was faster—but it was also less reliable. That’s because the University of Maryland device uses qubits that are all interconnected, which means they can all share information with each other. IBM’s, meanwhile, must swap information via a central hub, and that process can cause delicate quantum states to be destroyed.

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/603699/quantum-computers-finally-go-head-to-head/