Microsoft Develops Quantum Processor with Topological Core
The main problem of quantum computers remains the sensitivity of qubits to noise, which causes errors. Microsoft has developed a unique material – the so-called “topoconductor”, which allows you to control Majorana particles.

The American corporation Microsoft has presented Majorana 1 – the world’s first quantum processor with a topological core. This is the company’s first quantum processor based on a new architecture that allows you to create more stable qubits. This is reported by The Verge.

The main problem of quantum computers remains the sensitivity of qubits to noise, which causes errors. Microsoft has developed a unique material – the so-called “topoconductor”, which allows you to control Majorana particles.

Thanks to this, Majorana 1 can potentially accommodate a million qubits on a single chip.

A New Class of Materials

Majorana 1 is built on topological superconductors, a unique class of materials that allow for topological superconductivity. This is a new state of matter that previously existed only in theory. Its creation was made possible by combining a semiconductor (indium arsenide) and a superconductor (aluminum). When cooled to temperatures close to absolute zero and using magnetic fields, these materials form topological superconducting nanowires.

A step towards stable qubits

This technology allows information to be stored in topological qubits, which should be more stable than other types of qubits that exist today. The high instability of qubits remains a key problem in the development of quantum computers. Microsoft believes that quantum computers based on topological qubits can become an effective path to quantum computing with low error rates.

Plans and prospects

The company expects to create a practically useful quantum computer by the end of the decade.

Currently, quantum technologies are used mainly for research purposes, but they have the potential to significantly speed up data processing and open up new opportunities in medicine, materials science and other industries.

Microsoft became one of two companies that advanced to the final stage of the DARPA program to develop universal quantum computers. It will now work on creating a working prototype of a quantum machine based on topological qubits in the coming years.