Scientists from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) have unveiled a groundbreaking achievement in the field of quantum computing. They have successfully developed a prototype of the Zuchongzhi-3 superconducting quantum computer, consisting of 105 cubes and 182 ties. This quantum computer represents a major advancement in the quantum sampling of random circuits, surpassing current classic supercomputers in computing power. The research findings were published in the prestigious scientific journal Physical Review Letters.
The Zuchongzhi-3 quantum computer is capable of performing calculations at a speed that is 10^15 times faster than the most powerful supercomputer currently available. It outperforms the latest Google quantum processor by six orders of magnitude. This significant progress builds upon the success of its predecessor, the Zuchongzhi-2 processor. The work by Chinese scientists marks a crucial milestone in the path towards the practical application of quantum systems.
Quantum superiority refers to a quantum computer’s ability to solve problems that are beyond the reach of classical machines. In 2019, Google made headlines with its 53-qubit Sycamore processor, which solved a task in 200 seconds that would have taken supercomputers around 10,000 years. However, in 2023, Chinese researchers unveiled an algorithm that completed the same task in just 14 seconds using an array of NVIDIA A100 graphic processors, with the time later reduced to 1.6 seconds on more powerful systems. This development challenged Google’s dominance in the realm of quantum computing.
In previous years, USTC has achieved quantum superiority milestones with the Jiuzhang photon quantum processor in 2020 and the Zuchongzhi-2 superconducting quantum processor in 2021. Now, with the Zuchongzhi-3, Chinese researchers have once again demonstrated quantum superiority, surpassing classic supercomputers by a factor of 10.
The Zuchongzhi-3 boasts 105 cubes and exhibits a coherence time of 72 μs. It achieves remarkable accuracy levels in single-cube operations at 99.90%, two-cube operations at 99.62%, and reading accuracy at 99.13%. The extended coherence time allows for more complex calculations, which is essential for quantum algorithms.
To test the capabilities of the Zuchongzhi-3 system, scientists selected random quantum circuits with 83