UQ theoretician Dr Jon Links is developing rigorous mathematical techniques to underpin the next generation in computation – quantum computers.
He has been awarded $70,000 in funding from the UQ Foundation Research Excellence Awards to develop the cutting edge project he began two years ago.
Dr Links, a Research Fellow with the School of Physical Sciences is undertaking a detailed study into theoretical models of Bose-Einstein condensates, the coldest form of matter known to scientists.
Dr Links said understanding the manner in which Bose-Einstein condensates interact through a phenomenon known as quantum tunnelling would provide the insight needed to build a quantum computer. He said quantum tunnelling allowed for a particle to pass through a classically impenetrable wall.
“A quantum computer is a way of using the physics of quantum mechanics to get very fast processors. Computers are based on a binary system of zeros and ones. In quantum mechanics you can have zero and one working at the same time,” he said.
It is believed current technology will run into fundamental physical barriers around the year 2010. Researchers are looking at a way forward by building computers at the level of single atoms and single electrons, using quantum physics rather than everyday physics and electronics.
Quantum computers offer a solution to scientists in their drive towards ever-smaller chips. While conventional digital computers process information encoded in bits, quantum computers process information encoded in quantum states called qubits.
Quantum computers could, in principle, solve certain problems more quickly than conventional computers by making many attempts to solve problems at the same time. Dr Links said this would have a dramatic effect on the efficiency of the computer.
By analysing the theoretical models Dr Links hopes to find a way to run a quantum computer in which the Bose-Einstein condensates play the role of the bits.
“The Bose-Einstein condensate plays a unique role in testing our understanding of quantum physics. Because a large number of particles occupy the same quantum state this has the effect that the microscopic behaviour of the system is amplified to an extent that it can be observed on the macroscopic level,” he said.
“This result is driving a prolific level of research in both theory and experiment.”
He said this was the first time research had been done using this type of mathematical approach, which is more powerful than previous techniques.
By using the mathematical models he said it would be possible to discover theories and results that might not be observed in a laboratory.
“With a mathematical model you can analyse it to look for new behaviours that the model predicts. Then you can take those ideas and go into the laboratory and see if you can get the system to do what the theory predicts it should,” Dr Links said.
Dr Links is currently collaborating with visiting Professor Silvio Dahmen from the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil.
He also has a strong interaction with UQ academics: Professor of physics Ross McKenzie; Director of the Centre for Mathematical Physics Professor Mark Gould; and Postdoctoral Research Fellow in mathematics Dr Huan-Qiang Zhou.
Dr Links is an Australian Research Fellow funded by the Australian Research Council (ARC). He was the recipient of an ARC Discovery Grant held jointly with Professor Gould and senior lecturer in applied mathematics Dr Yao-Zhong Zhang.
Media: Videos and still photos are available at www.uq.edu.au/news/researchweek or for more information, contact Dr Jon Links (telephone 07 3365 2400, email: jrl@maths.uq.edu.au) or Chris Saxby at UQ Communications (telephone 07 3365 2479, email: c.saxby@uq.edu.au).
