Qubits break quantum limit to encode information for longer - New Scientist

Quantum particles can now be made to carry useful information for longerkoto_feja/Getty Images The odd phenomenon of quantum superposition has helped researchers break a fundamental quantum mechanical limit – and given quantum objects properties that make them useful for quantum computing for longer periods of time. For a century, physicists have been puzzled by exactly where the line between the quantum world of the small and the macroscopic world that we experience should be drawn. In 1985, physicists Anthony Leggett and Anupam Garg devised a mathematical test that could be applied to objects and their behaviour over time to diagnose whether they are big enough to have escaped quantumness. Here, quantum objects are identified by the unusually strong correlations between their properties at different points in time, akin to their behaviour yesterday and tomorrow being unexpectedly related. Advertisement Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox. We'll also keep you up to date with New Scientist events and special offers.