The Canadian company D-Wave is credit as the first company to sell commercial quantum computers. Founded in 1999, and with offices and labs facilities in Vancouver, Hanover and Palo Alto, D-Wave have already registered 140 patents in the United States about quantum computing, besides having published 90 scientific articles about the subject.
D-Wave Headquarter
Lots of D-Wave’s articles are available at their official site.
- In 2010 D-Wave launched their first commercial quantum computer, D-Wave One.
- In 2013 the D-Wave Two was launched, with 512 qubits, according to D-Wave.
- In 2015 the D-Wave 2X, was launched with over 1000 qubits, and in 2017 the D-Wave 2000Q, was launched with over 2000 qubits.
Through a collaboration between Google, NASA and the USRA in the creation of an artificial intelligence laboratory called QuAIL, a quantum computer from D-Wave was bought for 15 million dollars.
Following an example similar to IBM’s QE, the D-Wave 2000Q model can be accessed through the cloud, being able to receive codes in C/C++, Python and MATLAB. More information can be accessed on the official website of the company, link.
D-Wave computers also have problems keeping extremely low temperatures. A complete tour with excellent explanations can be seen in the following videos:
In this first video, Jeremy Hilton, vice president of the quantum processor development group, shows us inside D-Wave’s quantum computer explaining the need to keep the system at extremely low temperatures and free of magnetic influences. For this, it has a server system, to access the quantum processor, a sophisticated cooling system, the quantum processor itself, encapsulated by several layers and magnetic and thermal protections. The magnetic protections are due to the fact that the processor’s Qbits of the D-Wave are stored via magnetic fields, notably using their electronic spins.
In the second video, Murray Thom, director of professional services, demonstrates the D-Wave quantum processor, demonstrating that the refrigeration system has several layers, descending in stages: 300 kelvin, 50 kelvin, 3 kelvin, 0.7 kelvin, 0.1 kelvin and 0.01 kelvin. These temperatures are colder than those found in interstellar space.
In the third video, scientist Mark Johnson demonstrates details of the quantum processor, related to its operation and construction. The D-Wave’s quantum processor is made primarily of niobium, and the information units are performed via quantum magnetic flux. The video below demonstrates visually, through a short animation, D-Wave’s quantum processor structures, explained by Mark Johnson:
The D-Wave quantum processor is based on an effect called “Quantum Annealing“, which will be the subject of a future post.
D-Wave pioneered the commercial launch of a quantum computer, but by keeping its system closed for inspection, D-Wave was the subject of much skepticism and criticism from the scientific community that wondered if they had actually built a quantum computer.
References:
Pioneiros Quânticos: D-Wave!
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