Web Concepts

Posts Tagged ‘computer chips’

In the first study, researchers at the University of California-Santa Barbara say they’ve built the first working quantum computer chip based on the von Neumann system. Named for the engineer who designed the concept, the von Neumann architecture combines processors and memory, and it’s the basis for every computer out there. (With one notable recent exception.)

This quantum CPU (quCPU?) is a big breakthrough, because quantum computers by definition are difficult to design. They’re based on the concept of superposition — that a quantum bit, or qubit, can exist in two different states at once. Put another way, it can be a 0 or a 1 at the same time, and it can therefore perform calculations more quickly than a system based on 0 or 1. But it’s hard to keep the qubits in a state in which this is possible, and interfering with them — i.e., reading their data — can destroy their superposition capabilities. So, a system that integrates random access memory into the qubits is a big step toward a working computer.

Researchers at UCSB super-chilled their quCPU to near absolute zero and performed a few calculations. Quantum information traveled back and forth among storage and processing elements, and the system performed pretty well — not perfectly, but it’s a start. They also found that the quantum memory can retain information for much longer periods than the qubits, which is also a good sign.

Next, the team is trying to increase the number of quantum devices integrated on a single chip, and they’re studying different metallic materials to make this easier, according to Physics World.

In another quantum paper, researchers in Austria report building the first working quantum simulator — kind of like a quantum computer, but different in scope. It can be used to model the behavior of quantum systems, which can potentially help improve quantum computers.

It would be useful for many reasons to model the behavior of quantum systems, but this is impossible with a traditional computer, as Richard Feynman figured out in 1982. It would take exponential time, with the system working more and more slowly as the calculations increased in number. For a general description of a quantum spin system with 300 particles, a computer would need more memory than exists in the world — even if all of the observable matter in the universe was processed into memory, as the Austrian researchers put it last year. But a quantum simulator, which can complete so many more calculations, would not experience this slowdown. To make one of these, you would have to very carefully control the setup of the simulator, and this is what the Austrians have done.

The team used six laser-cooled calcium atoms as qubits, and used laser pulses to initiate calculations. They found the system could simulate several types of interacting spin systems, according to Science magazine, which published both papers today. The simulator can be reprogrammed to simulate any type of quantum system, the researchers say.

Given breakthroughs like these, quantum computers may be closer than ever.

[Science, Physics World]

In the first study, researchers at the University of California-Santa Barbara say they’ve built the first working quantum computer chip based on the von Neumann system. Named for the engineer who designed the concept, the von Neumann architecture combines processors and memory, and it’s the basis for every computer out there. (With one notable recent exception.)

This quantum CPU (quCPU?) is a big breakthrough, because quantum computers by definition are difficult to design. They’re based on the concept of superposition — that a quantum bit, or qubit, can exist in two different states at once. Put another way, it can be a 0 or a 1 at the same time, and it can therefore perform calculations more quickly than a system based on 0 or 1. But it’s hard to keep the qubits in a state in which this is possible, and interfering with them — i.e., reading their data — can destroy their superposition capabilities. So, a system that integrates random access memory into the qubits is a big step toward a working computer.

Researchers at UCSB super-chilled their quCPU to near absolute zero and performed a few calculations. Quantum information traveled back and forth among storage and processing elements, and the system performed pretty well — not perfectly, but it’s a start. They also found that the quantum memory can retain information for much longer periods than the qubits, which is also a good sign.

Next, the team is trying to increase the number of quantum devices integrated on a single chip, and they’re studying different metallic materials to make this easier, according to Physics World.

In another quantum paper, researchers in Austria report building the first working quantum simulator — kind of like a quantum computer, but different in scope. It can be used to model the behavior of quantum systems, which can potentially help improve quantum computers.

It would be useful for many reasons to model the behavior of quantum systems, but this is impossible with a traditional computer, as Richard Feynman figured out in 1982. It would take exponential time, with the system working more and more slowly as the calculations increased in number. For a general description of a quantum spin system with 300 particles, a computer would need more memory than exists in the world — even if all of the observable matter in the universe was processed into memory, as the Austrian researchers put it last year. But a quantum simulator, which can complete so many more calculations, would not experience this slowdown. To make one of these, you would have to very carefully control the setup of the simulator, and this is what the Austrians have done.

The team used six laser-cooled calcium atoms as qubits, and used laser pulses to initiate calculations. They found the system could simulate several types of interacting spin systems, according to Science magazine, which published both papers today. The simulator can be reprogrammed to simulate any type of quantum system, the researchers say.

Given breakthroughs like these, quantum computers may be closer than ever.

[Science, Physics World]

The whole thing weighs just over an ounce and measures about 4 inches on each side, yet includes a 3-axis accelerometer, two gyroscopes, a charging port and a tiny model airplane battery that gives it four and a half minutes of flying time. The battery and propellers are from a Silverlit X-Twin remote-controlled airplane.

The 64-mHz CPU uses data from the accelerometer and gyroscopes to make tiny adjustments 250 times per second, keeping the tiny copter airborne. It sounds somewhat like a bee swarm, or like an elegy on Autotune. Watch it in action below.

CrazyFlie is the work of the Daedalus Project, which is operated by the Swedish technology consulting firm Epsilon. Perhaps someday it will fly with its larger cousins in Switzerland, and learn how to play tennis or even the piano.

[via IEEE Spectrum]

While it’s still too early for the technology to really have taken shape, these nanotechnology chips would be similar to pregnancy tests. After putting urine or saliva on the chip, the user will receive results within minutes that tell them which STD, if any, they’ve contracted. Researchers hope that these confidential self-diagnosis devices would help encourage more people to get tested, without the embarrassment that accompanies seeing a doctor or going to a clinic.

Funders including the Medical Research Council have invested 4 million pounds into the technology’s development, which, if successful, could be a boon for promoting sexual health. Developers expect that the devices will one day be sold in vending machines in pharmacies, supermarkets and night clubs. Wouldn’t it just be easier to buy a condom?

[Guardian]

"In theory we can connect thousands of layers in a very straightforward fashion," Stan Williams, and scientist at HP, told the BBC. "It could provide a way of getting a ridiculous amount of memory on a chip."

Memristors improve on transistors in three key ways. First off, they allow the same device to serve as the processor and the memory. Right now, computers need separate devices for memory (such as solid state flash memory or regular magnetic hard drives) and processing (the computer chip itself). By eliminating the communication time and energy between those different parts of hardware, a memristor system would work far faster, and with far less energy, than a traditional computer.

Second, memristors can be much smaller than transistors. Quantum mechanics limits how tiny transistors can be, a limit that current technology is rapidly approaching. Memristors would allow computer chips to continue getting smaller past that point, all without resorting to exotic tricks like graphene chips or quantum computing.

Lastly, unlike transistors, which only work linearly, memristors can form three-dimensional networks. This added dimension exponentially expands the number of connections, and thus the power, of a memristor computer. In fact, the 3-D network capability of memristors is so profound that Leon Chua, the man who first theorized the existence of memristors in the 1971, believes that this technology could enable the creation of electronic brains. "We have the right stuff now to build real brains," he told the Times.

Hewlett Packard has already created a few simple devices that run on memristors as proof of concept, and they think that they can have the first working models capable of replacing some current computer parts within three years. However, with memristors enabling chip development for decades past where transistors would have hit their physical limit, the true value of this advance may not be realized for years to come.

[BBC News, and The New York Times]