Researchers were able to maintain a fragile quantum memory state at room temperature for a record 39 minutes by using ionised donors in Silicon-28, which could pave way for ultrafast computers.
As part of the research, which involved scientists from Britain, Canada and Germany, the temperature of the system that encodes data in the nuclei of phosphorus atoms in silicon from was increased from -269 degrees Celsius to 25 degrees Celsius and recorded the survival of the superposition states at room temperature for a record time.
Oxford University Department of Materials junior research fellow Stephanie Simmons said that 39 minutes may not seem very long but as it only takes one-hundred-thousandth of a second to flip the nuclear spin of a phosphorus ion – the type of operation used to run quantum calculations – in theory over two million operations could be applied in the time it takes the superposition to naturally decay by 1%.
"Having such robust, as well as long-lived, qubits could prove very helpful for anyone trying to build a quantum computer," Simmons said.
Researchers were also able to manipulate the qubits as the temperature of the system rose and then dropped to absolute zero, while at cryogenic temperatures their quantum memory system remained consistent for about three hours.
Lead author Mike Thewalt of Simon Fraser University said: "This opens up the possibility of truly long-term coherent information storage at room temperature."
