A team of researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) has developed the most efficient quantum memory for light in the world, making the future of super-fast computing and communications one step closer to reality, according to press release from the ANU.The researchers from the ANU Research School of Physics and Engineering deployed a technique they pioneered that allows them to manipulate light from a laser, controlling the electrons in a super-chilled crystal at -270 degrees Celsius. Lead researcher Morgan Hedges explains how it works:
Light entering the crystal is slowed all the way to a stop, where it remains until we let it go again. When we do let it go, we get out essentially everything that went in as a three-dimensional hologram, accurate right down to the last photon.
Because of the inherent uncertainty in quantum mechanics, some of the information in this light will be lost the moment it is measured, making it a read-once hologram. Quantum mechanics guarantees this information can only be read once, making it perfect for secure communication.
The memory has incredible accuracy and efficiency qualities never seen before, making it a leading candidate for quantum computing which would be far more powerful than today’s computing technology.
The team’s experiment ‘stopped’ light in a crystal for over a second, more than 1,000 times longer than was previously possible, according to team leader Dr Matthew Sellars. Now they are working on a system with higher efficiency which could store information for hours.
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