New Developments in Quantum Technology-New battle space for future

Quantum technology opens the way for more compact, quicker, and flexible electronics, such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging scanners the size of smartphones and quantum computers hundreds of times more potent than ordinary computers. Scientists are working on accelerator-based approaches for generating new materials that might speed up the development of quantum technology as we approach the second quantum revolution, which offers new ways to measure, process, and communicate information.

New quantum technologies may pave the way for transformative advances in secure communications, information technology, and high-precision sensors, as well as solutions to pressing challenges in fields such as medicine, industry, and security, thereby shaping global development in the twenty-first century. Quantum computers represent a computational paradigm change. Quantum systems are growing in size and dependability and are on the verge of outperforming traditional computers. Because this technology is still in its early stages, its total impact may not yet be wholly appreciated. Quantum computers and simulators could someday be able to answer some of science's most fundamental yet challenging issues. Sensors with incredible precision may finally allow physicists to test their most abstract concepts, perhaps combining quantum mechanics and gravity theories.

WHAT IS QUANTUM TECHNOLOGY?

Quantum technology is founded on quantum mechanics concepts, which were established in the early twentieth century to describe nature at the atomic and elementary particle scales.

Exploring the quantum environment promises additional spectacular uses other than computers. China, for example, has developed secure quantum communication lines between terrestrial stations and satellites. This field is essential for satellites, military, and cyber security, among other things, since it offers customers impossibly rapid computation and safe, unhackable satellite communication. It may aid in the resolution of several fundamental physics puzzles about gravity, black holes, and other phenomena. With quantum applications, tsunamis, droughts, earthquakes, and floods may become more foreseeable. Quantum technology can potentially improve the efficiency with which data on climate change is collected. This will significantly influence agriculture, food technology chains, and the reduction of agricultural waste. Quantum computing might decrease the current 10-year grind scientists put in to find new chemicals and associated processes to a few days. Tracking protein behaviour or even modelling new proteins, for example, might be made easier and faster with the aid of quantum computers. The technique can potentially treat chronic diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer's, and heart disease. Quantum computing is an essential component of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Its success will aid in strategic initiatives targeted at leveraging other Industrial Revolution 4.0 technologies, such as the Internet of Things, machine learning, robots, and artificial intelligence across industries, which will aid in establishing the groundwork for the Knowledge economy.

EVOLUTION OF QUANTUM 

The contemporary quantum theory originated in the 1920s, most notably with the Bohr-Einstein debates, which attracted attention to quantum non-locality, the same as quantum entanglement in pure bipartite quantum states. Simply said, the foundation of quantum physics is the discovery that measurements of physical variables such as location, momentum, spin, and polarisation can be conducted on entangled particles and, in most cases, provide the same results. Schrodinger's Machines, The Quantum Technology Reshaping Everyday Life, authored by Gerard J Milburn, was the first time quantum theory was seriously explored for real-world applications. Milburn introduces the phrase "Quantum Technology" and explores the early stages of how a quantum computer would function and the possibility of unbreakable quantum encryption. Quantum Technology quickly followed this. The Second Quantum Revolution in 2003, which presents further examples of technology that may be achieved using a quantum method and initiatives presently researching them.

The first quantum revolution was about creating devices that could manipulate photons and electrons, leading to the personal computer, LED lighting, GPS, and the Internet. The second revolution focuses on controlling the quantum state of individual atomic systems to build more powerful technology capable of addressing previously unsolvable issues. Since its inception in December 2016, the collaborative research initiative has brought together renowned scientists from Australia, China, Croatia, Finland, Italy, India, Israel, Singapore, Spain, and the United States. The project's primary goal is to create and characterize the changed material necessary for new quantum technologies using unique accelerator-based ion beam methods.

The quantum race has already begun. Across the globe, governments and private investors are investing billions of dollars in quantum research and development. The demonstration of satellite-based quantum key distribution for encryption lays the framework for a prospective quantum security-based global communication network. Quantum computing and quantum communication have the potential to change numerous industries, including healthcare, energy, economics, security, and entertainment. According to recent research, the quantum business will be worth billions of dollars by 2030. However, considerable practical hurdles must be addressed before achieving this degree of large-scale influence. Given the current state of the technology, it's unclear when or if total quantum computing capacity will be available.

GEOPOLITICAL RACE FOR QUANTUM TECHNOLOGY

The relevance of quantum technology to cryptography reveals the national security ramifications. Future universal quantum computers will be able to decipher such codes quickly. However, the maturity of a computer required to do so is at least five years away. In reality, the most sensitive communications should have switched to a different type of cryptography protocol by now, one that isn't known to be hackable in that way. The concept of a "quantum race" has proven to be both a burden and a boon to science. On the one hand, it has aided in expanding government expenditures for quantum research, but it has also brought with it a dose of national security fear.

The global players with a head start in this specialised sector are the United States, China, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Countries' desire to construct quantum computers has grown overwhelming in order to acquire a strategic advantage in cybersecurity, intelligence operations, and economic enterprise. The countries above have committed massive financial resources to quantum research and development. The world's giant quantum computer, IBM's Eagle, is now housed in the United States. IBM is also attempting to dominate the quantum world with a mega-computer processor capable of processing over 1.000 qubits. Google, Microsoft, and IBM are all American corporations that have helped the United States maintain a substantial edge in quantum computing.

China, the United States, and the United Kingdom all have aggressive national programmes to acquire computing talent and knowledge. For example, the Chinese have their "Thousand Talents Plan," which has captured the attention of the whole world. Beijing is spending heavily to attract scientists and experts. China has also made investments in two distinct architectural paths for attaining computing advantages in quantum supremacy. The US and China have implemented tit-for-tat restrictions on local enterprises to impede technical interchange. This has prompted various sources on the geopolitical dynamics driving quantum technology supply chains. These supply networks are vulnerable to geopolitical rivalry due to their concentration and capital-intensive character.

The European Union is also investing heavily in developing quantum computing, simulation, communication, metrology, and sensing technologies. Europeans are concerned about getting caught in the crossfire of Sino-American technological competition and are demanding measures to defend their interests. Other countries that have developed well-defined national efforts in quantum technology include France, Germany, Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Austria, Israel, the Netherlands, India, South Korea, Singapore, and Japan. New bilateral issues-based cooperation in quantum information sciences and technology (QIST) is also developing. In November 2021, the United Kingdom and the United States signed one such project.

Quantum technologies are predicted to advance space-based navigation systems such as GPS. There are several applications in submarine detection, radars, and military sensors. Currently, the most important application has been communication. China launched a quantum satellite that enables ultra-secure communication between two ground stations separated by 1000 kilometres. Quantum technology will undoubtedly be important in intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. Aside from processing, quantum sensing on individual vehicles and satellites will be the game changer. A quantum radar might be helpful in space warfare. Another key use of quantum technology will be undersea warfare, improving the detection of submarines and mines.

FOCUS ON QUANTUM IN INDIA

In India, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) launched an Rs 80 crore Quantum-Enabled Science and Technology (QuEST) programme in 2018. The purpose of DST's QuEST was to issue a request for proposals for quantum computing activities. The objective is for the government to have the technological capability to build quantum computers and communications networks within the next ten years. The National Mission for Quantum Technologies and Applications (NMQTA) will help India develop and implement quantum computers, secure communications through fibre and accessible space, quantum encryption and crypt-analysis, and related technologies, as well as address particular national and regional needs.

The government allocated Rs. 8,000 crores (nearly $1 billion) in February 2020 budget to the Department of Science and Technology for five years. This is done in order to improve its quantum information and meteorology, quantum applications and materials, and quantum communications capabilities. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched India's first Quantum Computer Simulator (QSim) Toolkit. The indigenous toolkit was released to enable academics and students to do Quantum Computing research at a low cost.

India should secure reliable supply chains, provide incentives for recruiting talent and form strategic cooperation agreements in quantum technologies with like-minded countries. Deepening synergies within QUAD's working group on vital and emerging technologies also offers significant potential. The broader structural ramifications of quantum technologies are primarily unknown. When employed by bad actors aiming to defeat encryption standards and current cryptography, quantum applications may potentially compromise the integrity of digital infrastructure and pose major structural concerns. With the introduction of NMQTA, India intends to deliver huge investment on par with comparable programmes announced previously by the United States and Europe. A groundbreaking partnership of physicists (including experimentalists and theorists), computer scientists, material scientists, and engineers. The government must collaborate with institutions and the scientific community to finalise and implement the mission's details promptly. Even with considerably lesser quantities, private support from businesses and philanthropy may play a significant role.

FUTURE OF QUANTUM TECHNOLOGY

Quantum computers' practical applications are currently being investigated and tested. It is feasible that in the future, quantum computers may be able to tackle issues that were previously impossible to address. They might, for example, be used to model molecules or forecast how a molecule would react under different situations. Some experts believe they may be used to calculate complex formulae indefinitely, making them an important tool in medical science, AI technology, aeronautical engineering, and other fields. The field of cybersecurity is also being transformed by quantum technology. Quantum computers can execute complex simulations in simultaneously, making them significantly quicker than traditional computers. Because quantum computers can perform simulations in parallel, they can swiftly solve challenging problems. Many areas, including banking, healthcare, and education, will be impacted and can evolve by quantum technology.

Quantum mechanics breakthroughs depend on technological investment and research resources. It will take some time to determine which technique will be successful in certain locations. While it is uncertain how much of an influence quantum computing will have on marketing in the future, there are currently some substantial applications taking place.

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Pic Courtsey-Michael Dziedzic at unsplash.com

(The views expressed are those of the author and do nto represent views of CESCUBE.)