While quantum computing technology may have the potential to solve complex problems at an unprecedented speed, it has long been hampered by a significant limitation— operating at sub-zero temperatures.
Associate Professor at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) Ahmed El-Gendy explained that, currently, quantum computers must be maintained at an -459 degrees Fahrenheit, just slightly above absolute zero.
"In order to make quantum computers work, we cannot use them at room temperature. That means we will need to cool the computers and cool all the materials, which is very expensive," he said.
But now El-Gendy (pictured) and fellow UTEP scientists claim to have achieved a major breakthrough: creating a highly magnetic quantum computing material capable of functioning at standard room temperature.
Key to their achievement, he said, was the development of a quantum computing material that boasts magnetic properties 100 times stronger than pure iron while remaining effective at regular temperatures.
The material is described in the journal Applied Physics Letters.
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