Top Quantum Computer Expert Claims Microsoft’s ‘topological Qubit’ Doesn’t Hold Up

A apical quantum computing master assails Microsoft’s claims that it has a “topological qubit,” arguing successful a caller insubstantial that nan institution has grounded to show nan technology.

University of St Andrews physicist Henry Legg argues that nan “topological qubit,” a storer of quantum accusation that could theoretically support a higher fidelity than immoderate successful existence, mightiness simply beryllium noise.

The commentary was published coming successful Nature’s “Matters Arising,” nan journal’s venue for general disapproval of its published papers. Legg’s consequence is aimed astatine Microsoft’s astir caller Nature paper, which was published earlier this month—but it is conscionable nan latest successful a drawstring of disapproval aimed astatine Microsoft’s Quantum section by different researchers successful nan field.

On supporting subject journalism

If you're enjoying this article, see supporting our award-winning publicity by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to guarantee nan early of impactful stories astir nan discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

The institution has been forced to retract definite erstwhile peer-reviewed papers. And successful nan caller commentary, Legg argues that their astir caller Nature insubstantial whitethorn beryllium likewise flawed. In a consequence also published coming by Nature, a personnel of Microsoft’s Quantum squad argues that their measurements do warrant nan declare that they’ve produced a topological qubit.

In a connection to Scientific American, Microsoft’s Technical Fellow and Corporate Vice President, Quantum Hardware, Chetan Nayak said, “We guidelines by our results and our roadmap. At nan extremity of nan day, occurrence is nan transportation of a scalable quantum computer. We are assured successful our expertise to execute against our roadmap and proud of our continued engagement pinch DARPA, which moved Microsoft into nan last shape of its Quantum Benchmarking Initiative aft independently evaluating our results—those successful nan nationalist realm and proprietary—with a squad of highly qualified experts. Skepticism and rigor are hallmarks of nan technological process, which we admit and person supported from various academics. We person participated successful speech and our thorough rebuttal was accepted and published by Nature.”

The critique—which Microsoft has known was successful nan useful astatine Nature for immoderate time—lands connected nan heels of nan company’s unveiling of nan “Majorana 2” chip, and an updated timeline to nutrient “scalable, applicable quantum computing” to nan extremity of nan decade. “They simply cannot waste nan 2029 roadmap arsenic reliable to nan nationalist erstwhile nan underlying physics is not there,” Legg says.

“The ‘Matters Arising’ makes it painfully evident that nan insubstantial successful Nature has nary technological value,” says Sergey Frolov, a physicist astatine nan University of Pittsburgh who was not progressive successful either paper. “And that it apt needs to beryllium retracted, for illustration nan different Nature papers associated pinch Microsoft.”