IBM makes housing for quantum computer

IBM has placed its 20-qubit quantum computer in an integrated system. According to the manufacturer, this is a new step towards the commercial deployment of a quantum computer.

As with a classic computer, IBM combines different parts in an integrated architecture with its IBM Q System One, as the system is called. The components are placed in a cryogenic vessel, in a glass-sealed housing. Environmental factors cannot thus disrupt the vulnerable state of the quantum computer.

In addition, quantum firmware has been developed to monitor the system and to be able to perform upgrades. A combination with classical computers has also been created for simulations and for triggering quantum algorithms from the outside. Little seems to have changed in terms of content compared to IBM’s existing quantum systems, with which it has been conducting test work for years.

However, according to the manufacturer, a step has been taken towards deployment outside its research labs. IBM has been offering the option of performing simple quantum calculations via the internet since 2016. Last year, the company entered into its first commercial agreements to use the IBM Q Network. That network provides access to IBM’s 20-qubit systems. They are located in Oak Ridge in the US and Oxford in England, but this year systems are to be added in New York, IBM reports.

The systems are primarily intended for test work. Real advantage over simulations via classical computing can only be expected in stable systems with about fifty qubits. Science uses that limit for quantum supremacy.