'Defects' in silicon chips could house qubits, hastening the arrival of a future quantum internet

Researchers in quantum mechanics believe they’ve found a standard way to assess the viability of quantum memory in silicon chips — meaning existing components can be used as the fabric for a future quantum internet.

This discovery comes on the heels of several other findings in the quantum networking realm, bringing a working network that connects quantum computers a step closer to reality. The biggest barrier is providing a dependable structure for carrying quantum data from one area to another.

"It’s still a Wild West out there,” said lead researcher Evelyn Hu, professor of applied physics and electrical engineering at Harvard University, in a statement. "Even though new candidate defects are a promising quantum memory platform, there is often almost nothing known about why certain recipes are used to create them, and how you can rapidly characterize them and their interactions, even in ensembles."

These new candidate defects are found in silicon chips as a result of the manufacturing process. Hu and her team set out to discover ways to measure and control the performance of qubits in "G-center" defects in silicon chips, and how G-centers perform when interacting with electric fields.

G-centers are carbon-based defects in silicon, while T-centers are carbon and hydrogen-based defects. Both are used in telecommunications to facilitate transmission of O-bands — a wavelength band used in the infrared light for optical communications.

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The application of G-centers and T-centers in quantum networking helps solve a common problem in quantum computing: stabilization of wavelengths. Hu’s team focused on G centers for the purpose of this study.