Nature: Researchers at Google have developed a prototype quantum computer that improves on earlier designs by combining analog and digital approaches. It is based on adiabatic quantum computing (AQC), in which a group of qubits is encoded with a computational problem and then subjected to gradually changing external conditions. The system arrives at a solution by adapting and adjusting its collective quantum state. Although any problem can be encoded in such an AQC system, errors are rife due to random noise. To correct that problem, the researchers have added digitized quantum computing to take advantage of digital circuits’ ability to systematically correct errors. Google’s prototype device consists of a superconducting circuit of nine aluminum qubits deposited on a sapphire surface and cooled to 0.02 K. Although the device comprises just a few qubits, a scaled-up version could be used to solve computational problems too complex for classical computers, such as simulating molecules and materials at the quantum level.
Despite the tumultuous history of the near-Earth object’s parent body, water may have been preserved in the asteroid for about a billion years.
October 08, 2025 08:50 PM
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Physics Today - The Week in Physics
The Week in Physics" is likely a reference to the regular updates or summaries of new physics research, such as those found in publications like Physics Today from AIP Publishing or on news aggregators like Phys.org.