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Quantum Computing Meaning and how it works
In this article, we will let you know about what is quantum computer, Quantum Computing meaning, its applications, how does quantum computer works and types of quantum computing.
What is a Quantum Computer?
A Quantum computer is a device used for complex computation, which uses quantum mechanical phenomena to perform operations on data.
In an ordinary computer, data is stored in the form of a bit.
In quantum computers, data is stored as qubits (quantum bits). One qubit can store two bits of data.
These bits look like small switches, which can either be on or off.
On is represented as one and off is represented by zero.
So eventually every application that we visit is made of millions of these bits which are a combination of ones and zeros.
When the output is certain (one or zero) our normal computer handles it very well.
Sometimes when things are uncertain, even supercomputers cannot deal with it. Hence, Quantum computers came into existence.
How does Quantum Computer work?
Quantum computers are not the same as that of normal computers that work on transistors or diodes.
These computers are built using quantum mechanisms to perform operations with complex data.
Research is still being performed to develop quantum computing to build quantum computers.
Quantum computers are built successfully in such a way that they would be exponentially faster than the rest of the computers.
The best thing about Qubits is that it can be in a superposition. For example, if we take a coin and flip it, it could be either heads or tails.
If we spin it, it can be heads or tails until we stop it or it can be either too.
This is one feature that makes quantum computers strong. Quantum computers operate with the help of quantum properties.
Do Quantum Computers exist now?
Some of the organizations that are exploring quantum computing for better cybersecurity are Microsoft, Google, Intel, IBM, and Alibaba.
Google has been exploring since 2009 and researchers are still working on this.
Things that Quantum Computing do
Quantum computers are super fast and efficient. Artificial intelligence is developed through quantum computing.
Another key application using quantum properties is Cryptography.
A lot of cryptography which happens in classical computers is very slow and hence expensive.
Quantum computers can do it quickly as it is known for integer factorization.
They can perform complex mathematical calculations in a short time using algorithms, which would otherwise take a very long time for classical computers to resolve.
Types of Quantum Computing
There are three types of quantum computing and they are as follows:–
Quantum Annealing
Solving optimization problems is the main use of Quantum Annealing.
For example optimizing the weather data, airport schedules, airline routes, passenger information to get cost-effective and best logistic solutions.
This is the most difficult task and Quantum computers can do it in less than a few hours whereas, normal computers would take many years to find an optimal solution.
Quantum Simulations
This deals with Quantum chemistry and nanotechnology where simulation is most importantly focused.
Here behavior inside the atom is simulated in different conditions to find out how it reacts using quantum simulation.
Universal Quantum Computing
This is a powerful type of computing that is mostly used and it is very difficult to build it as it makes use of more than 100000 qubits.
This type of computing is used massively for very complex scenarios to get quicker results.
Algorithms are being designed by researchers with a massive set of data, for example, factoring numbers.
Applications using Quantum Computing in different Industries
Quantum Computing is used in many industries. Some of them are listed below –
- Health industry
- Agriculture
- Artificial intelligence
Google is developing a quantum computer known as ‘Universal Gate’. It is similar to a normal computer but uses quantum computing i.e. qubits which can take any value between 0 or 1.
Quantum computers are not standalone devices. They require other normal computers or devices to write programs, run or monitor them.
Researchers are still looking into building quantum computers using quantum computing and we need to see how useful it would be considering the cost and time that they are investing.
