A chip that can handle two-dimensional quantum walks of single photons on a physical device has been developed. The research team is from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the University of Science and Technology of China.
A random walk is exactly what it sounds like, a group of objects wandering randomly from their point of origin. Scientists describe this mathematically to show a current position and possible next steps. This helps the construction of models that depict random, complex, and sophisticated networks, like the human neural network.
Now, researchers have developed a chip that supports the quantum version, and may be useful in future quantum-based robots. The enhanced quantum walks boast considerable advancements over its classic counterpart, but also carries a unique set of challenges “due to probabilistic generation of single photons and multiplicative loss.”
According to the research, the team developed “a two-dimensional continuous-time quantum walk by using the external geometry of photonic waveguide arrays, rather than the inner degree of freedoms of photons. Using femtosecond laser direct writing, we construct a large-scale three-dimensional structure that forms a two-dimensional lattice with up to 49 × 49 nodes on a photonic chip.”
The researchers note that beyond aiding future quantum computers, the photonic chip could also help quantum computing and simulator performance.
To learn more, read “Experimental two-dimensional quantum walk on a photonic chip,” published in Science Advances.