INDIA'S QUANTUM COMPUTING AMBITIONS

The Centre has approved ₹6,003 crore for the National Quantum Mission, to fund scientific and industrial research development in quantum technology. What is quantum technology and why India so keen on is investing in it? Where will the applications of this lie? Sarthak Ray takes a look at these questions

- Sarthak Ray

What is quantum technology

QUANTUM TECHNOLOGY is largely understood as the segment of technology that is based on principles of quantum physics. Quantum physics, in turn, is the study of matter and energy at the most fundamental level, where classical laws of physics don't apply. "It aims to uncover the properties and behaviours of the very building blocks of nature," says Caltech.

Quantum physics principles and discoveries already mark their presence in our world - the discoveries over the decades fuelled innovation and allowed us to come up with devices and applications, such as lasers and transistors, etc. They have also put us forth on the path to quantum computing, which is still under development.

Quantum computers

QUANTUM COMPUTERS have the same foundational elements as classical onesthey use chips, circuits and logic gates, and operations are orchestrated by algorithms. Data is also transmitted in the binary code of Os and 1s. Where they differ is classical computing uses bit as the fundamental unit of data; a bit can either be 1 or 0 exclusively.