Tech Briefs Magazine - October 2023 - 10

5Wsheadline headline
headline headline line
of the
'Enchilada' Trap
Who
Dubbed as the Enchilada Trap, a new ion trap
- central component for certain quantum
computers - enables scientists to build more
powerful machines to advance the experimental
but potentially revolutionary field of
quantum computing.
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What
An ion trap is a type of microchip that holds
electrically charged atoms, or ions. With
more trapped ions, or qubits, a quantum
computer can run more complex algorithms.
With sufficient control hardware, the Enchilada
Trap could store and transport up to 200
qubits using a network of five trapping zones
inspired by its predecessor, the Roadrunner
Trap. Both versions are produced at Sandia's
Microsystems Engineering, Science and Applications
fabrication facility. According to Daniel Stick, a Sandia Scientist and leading researcher with the Quantum
Systems Accelerator, a quantum computer with up to 200 qubits and current error rates will not outperform a conventional
computer for solving useful problems. However, it will enable researchers to test an architecture with many
qubits that in the future will support more sophisticated quantum algorithms for physics, chemistry, data science,
materials science, and other areas. " We are providing the field of quantum computing room to grow and explore
larger machines and more complicated programming, " Stick said.
The Enchilada Trap, manufactured in Sandia National Laboratories' Microsystems
Engineering, Science and Applications fabrication facility. (Image: Craig Fritz)
Where
Sandia National Labs, Albuquerque, NM
Why
As quantum computing continues to gain interest, with devices capable of supporting 200 trapped ion qubits, bigger
and better quantum computers are possible in future.
When
In addition to traps operated at Sandia, several traps will be used at Duke University for performing quantum
algorithms.
Contact Prabhpreet Gill, Technology Licensing Associate, Office of Technology Licensing, at psgill@princeton.edu,
609-258-3653, or visit https://innovation.princeton.edu
10
For more information, contact Troy Rummler at trummle@sandia.gov; 505-249-3632.
www.techbriefs.com
Tech Briefs, October 2023
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Tech Briefs Magazine - October 2023

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