Insider Brief
- A ‘scalable’ quantum error decoder is a critical component in the first generation of ‘error corrected quantum computers.
- Error correction is considered quantum computing’s defining challenge.
- Riverlane scientists say the device will help move quantum from an experimental technology to machines with the scale and reliability.
PRESS RELEASE — Riverlane, a quantum engineering company, today announced a world first in ‘decoding’ the errors that will power the first generation of ‘error corrected’ quantum computers.
This advance in decoding technology – the first of its kind due to the scalability of the decoding hardware to support far larger numbers of qubits than currently possible – was demonstrated live at National Quantum Technology Showcase (NQTS) in London on 11 November. The demo was a prototype of what will become a decoding chip that can sit in all future quantum computers.
Today’s quantum computers have limited usefulness due to the inherent instability of qubits – the processors that enable quantum mechanical computation. This instability leads to floods of data errors that overwhelm all current quantum computers. We are now entering the first generation of error corrected quantum computing where such errors can be detected, diagnosed and corrected in real time. Riverlane’s scalable, high-speed decoder is a critical component enabling the transition to this new era.
In front of a live audience at the NQTS, Riverlane demonstrated the full cycle of operations to precisely detect specific quantum data errors in fractions of a second on a simulated quantum computer. Riverlane’s quantum decoder is the first designed to support a very large number of qubits.
“To effectively tackle currently unsolvable human problems in fields like clean energy and new drug design, we need to transition to a new generation of error corrected quantum computers that can perform millions of high-speed operations without disruption. Today’s quantum computers can still only perform around 100 operations before they fail. That transition will take time but it starts now. Our decoder is a critical component and a leap forward,’ said Steve Brierley, Riverlane’s founder and CEO.
The UK National Quantum Technologies Showcase is an annual initiative hosted by the UK government-backed National Quantum Technologies Programme (NQTP), where the UK’s most exciting projects from across the quantum landscape are exhibited.
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