Bizarre matter could find use in quantum computers

April 22, 2010

“5/2 quantum Hall liquids” — ultracold mixes of electrons caught in magnetic traps — could have the necessary properties for constructing fault-tolerant quantum computers, Rice University and Princeton University physicists have discovered.

The bizarre state of matter acts like a particle with one-quarter electron charge and has a “quantum registry” that is immune to information loss from external perturbations.

More info: Rice University News