Are We Computing Quantum in the Wrong Base? with Ivan Deutsch

About this episode

Ivan Deutsch discusses the implications of using only two energy levels in quantum computing and suggests a potential shift in computational bases.

Every commercial neutral-atom quantum computer today encodes information in just two energy levels of an atom that has many more — strontium has ten nuclear-spin levels, cesium has sixteen. Ivan Deutsch, one of the founding theorists of neutral-atom quantum computing, joins the podcast to ask whether binary is really the right base for quantum computation, and to make the case for spin cat codes: a fault-tolerant encoding that embeds a qubit inside the richer structure of a qudit, the way bosonic cat codes use microwave cavities. Along the way, Ivan traces three decades at UNM — from the earliest days of quantum information science to his role building Elevate Quantum, the only federally designated quantum Tech Hub in the United States.

People in this episode

Host: Sebastian Hassinger

Guest: Ivan Deutsch

Topics covered

• quantum computing
• neutral-atom technology
• theoretical foundations
• energy levels
• computational bases

Keywords

• quantum computing
• neutral atoms
• energy levels
• theoretical foundations
• computational bases

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: QuEra, Pasqal, Atom Computing, Infleqtion

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