Hewlett-Packard and the National Institute for Informatics in Tokyo have devised a quantum computer that uses powerful laser pulses to process quantum bits.

The system would use laser beams as a communication channel between optical qubits. Information on the quantum state of qubits would be combined in the beam, and then processed by measuring the beam. This would make it easier to process quantum information, as beams can be controlled more easily than single particles of light.

The design could also be used to link quantum computing to light-based communications systems.