Q&A: The Feasibility of Quantum Computing
The Feasibility of Quantum Computing
Question
Have a good week, Rabbi,
In your latest column on free will you wrote this:
Quantum effects occur on very small scales, and they fade away when one reaches the scales of our everyday life. There are no quantum effects in bodies larger than a micron (one-thousandth of a millimeter), and even that is only at very low temperatures.
Does that mean that you think quantum computing is impossible? Because in a quantum computer the quantum effects reach the larger scales too, don’t they?
Best regards,
Answer
Quantum effects can occur on large scales if the system is prepared in advance so that it contains long-range correlations. That is the case with liquids and with conductors. But naturally this does not happen. Beyond that, a quantum computer is cooled to very low temperatures, really almost to absolute zero. https://block.org.il/news/the-most-powerful-computer-on-earth/
And it is still not clear whether this is practical. Many question whether it is possible to overcome the noise.