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Computation Take a Quantum Leap

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Visit this site: http://www.sciencenews.org/20000826/fob1.asp
Author:Ivars Peterson - Science News Online
Description: A quantum computation involving a custom-built molecule furnishes experimental evidence that a quantum computer can determine the order of a permutation more efficiently than can a conventional computer. For their quantum computer, Isaac L. Chuang of the IBM Almaden Research Center in San Jose, Calif. and his team designed a molecule in which the nuclei of five fluorine atoms interact with each other to produce a five-qubit system (SN: 1/18/97, p. 37). The researchers report that they used radio pulses to "program" the nuclei into specific quantum states. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) instruments could then detect the results. The investigators tackled a permutation problem. Roughly speaking, computing the order of a permutation is akin to finding the shortest path through a hidden maze of rooms, each with precisely one exit and one entrance, connected by one-way passages. The goal is to get back to the starting point most quickly.
Levels: High School (9-12), College
Languages: English
Resource Types: Articles
Math Topics: Quantum Theory

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