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Quantum Computing

Quantum Computing

Towards effective, manufacturable quantum computing

Published on 1 December 2021

CEA-Leti: building a silicon-based path to effective, manufacturable quantum computing

Since the 1940s, semiconductor technologies have enabled development of increasingly capable computers, with today’s extraordinarily powerful systems utilizing fingernail-sized pieces of silicon that contain billions of transistors. Now, there is wide interest in extending these capabilities even further with a concept first theorized in the 1980s: the use of quantum phenomena to perform computation. Early experimental demonstrations suggest that the ability to harness quantum physics to solve extremely challenging problems may be coming within reach. Diverse experimental platforms have been evaluated in the quest to fabricate qubits, the quantum bits that are broadly analogous to the bits used in classical computing. Many organizations around the world are pursuing these capabilities,
along four primary paths:

  • Superconductors
  • Photonics
  • Trapped ions
  • Electron spin within semiconductors (silicon)