Google claims to have developed a quantum computing algorithm capable of surpassing the speed of the most powerful supercomputers in the world by a factor of 13,000. The advance, dubbed Quantum Echoes, represents a big step towards real applications in fields such as medicine, chemistry or materials science.
This new algorithm belongs to a family known as Out-of-Time-Order Correlatordesigned to analyze the structure of extremely complex natural systems, from molecules to phenomena associated with black holes.
According to Google, This is the first time a quantum algorithm has been verifiably run on quantum hardware..
Quantum Echoes It works on Willow, Google’s quantum chip introduced late last year. It is capable of completing in less than five minutes a computational test that would take a supercomputer ten septillions of years to solve, a difference that marks a qualitative leap in quantum performance.
These advances have been collected in two recently published studies. The first demonstrates how algorithm verifiability could advance disciplines such as nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The second describes the use of a quantum molecular ruler capable of measuring atomic distances and revealing chemical structures with unprecedented precision.
Quantum Echoes measures how a system changes after a series of quantum operations, analyzing parameters such as magnetization, density or velocity to evaluate its level of chaos. Mountain View engineers explain that the algorithm sends a designed signal to the Willow chip, alters a qubit, and then reverses its evolution to generate a measurable and verifiable state.
In a recent experiment, the team managed to determine the structure of two molecules with results that matched conventional nuclear magnetic resonance techniques, demonstrating their scientific potential.
According to Google, This advance opens the door to observing natural phenomena that were previously inaccessible, which could lead to the development of new drugs and the creation of advanced materials..