Quantum leap in quest for digital speed and security

Society’s increasing reliance on the internet, computers and mobile phones puts stringent demands on technological developments. Shrinking the electronic components – in other words, increasing the number of transistors on a single chip – is not an easy task as current components are already reaching atom-like sizes.

Progress in computation and communication technologies requires departure from conventional technological platforms.

At the same time, progress in information security is needed as the use of digital technologies for communication, financial transactions and information storage continues to grow. Existing encryption methods are known to be breakable, and hacking attacks are becoming more sophisticated and more frequent.

Encoding information into photons – individual “quanta” of light – can enable breakthroughs in both computation power and information security. Optical and quantum computers have the potential to outperform current generation technologies and guarantee information security. Each photon is unique and unable to be eavesdropped, protected by the laws of quantum physics.

Read the full story in the UTS Newsroom.