Ion trap quantum computing research group
We are primarily an experimental research group, testing and developing ideas in quantum computing using microwave- and laser-manipulated trapped ions.
Trapped atomic ions are one of the most promising platforms for realising a useful quantum computer. They exhibit all properties necessary for building such a system and have very few fundamental limitations to the achievable gate fidelity. The single- and two-qubit gate fidelities demonstrated in small-scale systems, combined with the ions' long coherence times, exceed the capabilities of any other proposed architecture. However, to build a useful quantum simulator that outperforms current classical machines (and therefore achieve ‘quantum advantage’) the system size needs to be scaled up to at least a few tens of qubits without compromising the precision of the operations.
Ions also interface naturally with optical photons, enabling quantum networking. We work on photonically-networked ion traps, the development of microfabricated chip trap technology, and high-fidelity quantum logic operations. Our work forms one of the core areas of the UK's Quantum Computing and Simulation Hub, led by Oxford.
See Research Areas for more information about our ongoing projects.
