Applying the concept of neural networks to quantum error correction and control could be a game-changer for advancing the performance of quantum processors. Now, Israel’s Quantum Machines and France-based Alice&Bob have teamed up with leading European quantum computing researchers on a project to pursue that notion
The companies are working with groups led by Prof. Benjamin Huard from the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon and Prof. Florian Marquardt of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light on a three-year project aimed at establishing and commercializing “a radically new approach to quantum control based on neural networks, the companies said in a statement.
They plan to develop a quantum controller that incorporates real-time neural networks capable of generating controls. The companies believe that neural networks will enhance the accuracy and performance of quantum processors, and heavily reduce reliance on classical control resources, which currently pose a major hurdle to scaling up error correction and optimal control methods.
According to the companies, the expected outcomes of the project are:
- The deployment of a universal quantum controller with a user-friendly interface and accompanying open-source code libraries for the implementation of the new approach on a variety of quantum processors and devices.
- The public availability of a cloud-based quantum processor with a unique user interface, allowing for the programming and execution of a rich variety of real-time neural networks. This will allow researchers to explore this new approach toward practical quantum computing and quantum sensing, even if they do not have direct access to quantum hardware.
“The future viability of practical quantum computing is heavily dependent on achieving error correction in a consistent and efficient way,” said Dr. Yonatan Cohen, CTO of Quantum Machines. “We expect the neural networks being developed as part of ARTEMIS to help improve our control over larger numbers of qubits, even in the face of environmental decoherence, to help facilitate the real-world deployment of quantum computers.”
“Alice&Bob’s roadmap is predicated on a lean inspiration: we aim to reduce the minimum quantum resources required to build a fault-tolerant quantum computer”, said Dr. Théau Peronnin, CEO of Alice&Bob. “By making control more efficient, ARTEMIS advances that philosophy outside the cryostat and brings the reality of practical quantum computing one step closer.”
The announcement of this project comes about a month after Alice&Bob touted the creation of qubits resistant to bit-flip errors and an error correction demonstration that broke records previously established by Amazon and Google. Quantum Machines also has been doing its part to advance quantum error correction, recently unveiling a pulse processing unit to enable real-time error correction.
Dan has covered telecommunications and related topics including semiconductors, sensors, retail systems, digital payments and quantum computing/technology for over 25 years.