Context:
Recently, scientists from various institutions in Japan worked together on a study reported in the journal Science Advances.
Breakthrough in Quantum Computing With Stable Room Temperature Qubits
- The Japanese study focused on a system with zirconium as the metal component and an organic molecule containing the chromophore pentacene connecting the metal atoms.
- They discovered a way to create qubits, the building blocks of quantum computers, at room temperature using a metal-organic framework (MOF).
What Is Qubit?
- It is the fundamental unit of information in quantum computing.
- It is a two-state (or two-level) quantum-mechanical system.
- It uses the quantum mechanical principle of superposition to combine two states linearly.
- This quality of superposition is unique to quantum systems as it is not present in the bits of traditional computers.
- These superposed states, also referred to as coherent superpositions.
- It plays a significant role in quantum information processing methods.
Challenges With Qubits:
- Qubits’ superposition feature is special but is fragile due to interactions with other systems.
- They should be the same to make a quantum device which is very difficult.
- They are manufactured so there are chances of small errors.
- A MOF is like a pattern made of molecules that repeat over and over.
- In this pattern, there’s a metal atom or ion in the center, and organic molecules are attached to it like tentacles.
- Each tentacle links to another metal atom, and this pattern continues to build the MOF structure.
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About Chromophores
- Chromophores are molecules that absorb specific colors of light due to which it helps in giving objects their dominant color.
- For instance, the green color of numerous plant leaves results from chlorophyll, a chromophore that mainly absorbs red and blue light from sunlight.
- Chromophores cause coloration due to which it is commonly referred to as “color molecules”.
- When a chromophore absorbs light, it enters a higher energy level known as an excited state.
Spin
- Each electron inherently possesses a characteristic known as spin.
- The concept of electron spin refers to the rotation of the electron around its own axis.
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- In its ground state, a chromophore molecule has a pair of electrons with opposite spins, known as a singlet configuration.
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- Singlet configuration occurs when the spins of two electrons point in opposite directions, resulting in a total spin of zero.
- Excitation involves electrons moving to higher energy levels similar to climbing up a ladder.
- A singlet excited state arises when electrons on different energy levels have opposite spins, while a triplet excited state occurs when electrons on different levels have spins in the same direction.
- The process, where a singlet excited state chromophore produces two triplet excited chromophores, is called singlet fission.
- This energy transfer occurs as the two chromophores interact.
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February 27, 2024