IonQ, in collaboration with the Australian National University (ANU), has achieved a significant advancement in trapped-ion quantum computing by developing high-speed, mixed-species quantum logic gates. The research, detailed in a new paper, introduces a novel approach using ultrafast state-dependent kicks (SDKs) delivered via nanosecond laser pulses to achieve two-qubit gate speeds in the megahertz (MHz) range. This represents an orders-of-magnitude improvement over traditional mixed-species gates, which typically operate at kilohertz (kHz) speeds.
The research focuses on mixed-species gates, which involve quantum operations between ions of different atomic elements, such as Barium (Ba) and Ytterbium (Yb). These gates are critical for scalable quantum networks, enabling efficient entanglement distribution and linking computational qubits across separate quantum processing nodes via photonic connections. By leveraging SDKs, IonQ’s approach reduces motional decoherence and gate infidelities, achieving theoretical infidelities as low as 10⁻⁴. This innovation is a key step toward fault-tolerant quantum computing and scalable quantum architectures.
The practical implications of this advancement include faster entanglement generation, improved quantum information transfer, and deeper quantum circuits. The increased gate speed and fidelity also support quantum networking by enabling rapid, high-fidelity transfer of quantum information between network and memory qubits. IonQ has filed for patent protection on the underlying technology and plans to experimentally validate these techniques for integration into future commercial systems.
For more details, read the full research paper here, IonQ’s press release here, and the technical blog post here.
March 6, 2025
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