History
This physicist said in 1981, “To simulate nature, build a quantum computer.”
Who is Richard Feynman?
The smallest unit of information in a quantum computer.
What is a qubit?
Developed in 1996, this algorithm searches an unstructured database faster than classical methods.
What is Grover’s algorithm?
Every quantum state can be represented as this mathematical object
What is a vector?
These first classical computers of the 1940s inspired the development of quantum computing.
What are ENIAC and Colossus?
A qubit can exist in this state, meaning it can represent multiple values at once.
What is a superposition?
Developed in 1994, this algorithm finds the prime factors of large numbers.
What is Shor’s algorithm?
Quantum gates are represented as this mathematical object which represents a linear transformation
What is a matrix
This scientist defined the universal quantum computer in 1985.
Who is David Deutsch?
This property links two or more qubits so that the state of one affects the others.
What is entanglement?
Grover’s algorithm searches N elements in this runtime, faster than classical O(N).
What is O(√N)?
This class of gates allow for qubits to get entangled with eachother
Quantum computing is based on discoveries in this branch of physics, studying the smallest particles in the universe.
What is quantum mechanics?
This is the physical chip containing qubits and readout circuits in a quantum computer.
What is the Quantum Processing Unit (QPU)?
Shor’s algorithm runs in this type of runtime, slower than Grover but much faster than classical factoring.
What is polynomial time?
This is the matrix that represents the H gate
What is
1/sqrt(2) *
[
1 1
1 -1
]
By the 1960s-80s, physicists discovered three main limitations of classical computers. Name one.
What is difficulty simulating quantum systems? (Other acceptable answers: quantum effects in small chips, information is quantum in nature)
These operations, including Hadamard and CNOT, manipulate qubits to perform algorithms.
What are quantum gates?
This transform, abbreviated QFT, is used in Shor’s algorithm to find repeating patterns.
What is the Quantum Fourier Transform?
Every quantum gate is unitary, which means this
What is being reversible such that it preserves the total probability of a system's quantum state.