Experimental technology may be the future of computing

Experimental technology could be the future of computing. On Tuesday, Google, the search engine giant, has given outsiders their first peep at its experimental quantum super-computing system that it think would one day lead to a new era of data crunching.

For the last two years, Google and its partners the non-profit Universities Space Research Association and NASA have been doing experiments with the cutting edge technology. Their aim is to create an enhanced way to solve quite complex issues such as improvement in air traffic control and desalination plant operations, even in case the data is quite jumble.

The computing system is placed at NASA Ames Research Center, near Mountain View, Calif. It looks like a huge black utility box that as per the researchers working on it has one quantum computing chip and a big refrigeration system. A noticeable chirping sound comes when the pumps help keeping the system at around absolute zero degrees.

Quantum computing depends on the idea of so-called particles known as quantum bits, or qubits that have the ability to exist in over two physical states at one time. A qubit is not like traditional computers, wherein a silicon chip’s transistors were either turned on or off, and can be both at one time. In theory this would lead to more powerful computers that would have the ability to work faster as compared to the ones generally used today.

The researchers highlighted that quantum computing is presently in the experimental stages and hasn’t been commercialized yet.