Quantum computers promise to transform scientific computation and pose a challenge to public-key cryptosystems. Industrial efforts to build quantum computers are creating more sophisticated devices, but there remains a significant gap between current machines and machines that will solve challenging, useful problems. I will present an overview of the state of quantum computation and consider how research at universities can accelerate the development of this technology.
Professor Ken Brown is the Michael J. Fitzpatrick Distinguished Professor of Engineering in Electrical and Computer Engineering at Duke University and Director of the Duke Quantum Center. His research focuses on controlling quantum systems to enable robust quantum computing, spanning quantum error correction, quantum control, and quantum computer architecture, with a particular emphasis on ion-trap quantum computing.