Google's Sycamore quantum computer chip can now outperform the fastest supercomputers, new study suggests
Experiments on Google's 67-qubit Sycamore processor showed operations entering a new "weak noise phase" in which calculations were complex enough to outperform supercomputers, based on benchmark testing.
Google Quantum AI researchers have discovered a "stable computationally complex phase" that can be achieved with existing quantum processing units (QPUs), also known as quantum processors.
This means that when quantum computers enter this specific "weak noise phase," they can perform computationally complex calculations that outpace the performance of the fastest supercomputers. The research — which was led by Alexis Morvan, a quantum computing researcher at Google — was published Oct. 9 in the journal Nature.
"We are focused on developing practical applications for quantum computers that cannot be done on a classical computer," Google Quantum AI representatives told Live Science in an email. "This research is a significant step in that direction. Our next challenge is to demonstrate a 'beyond classical' application with real-world impact."
However, the data produced by quantum computers is still noisy, meaning they still need to do fairly intensive quantum "error correction" as the number of qubits rises in order for the qubits to remain in the "weak noise phase," they added.
