D-Wave puts 1000 qubits on a chip

D-Wave Systems has put 1000 qubits, comprising 128,000 Josephson Junctions, on a chip using a 6-metal layer planar process with 0.25μm features.

D-Wave’s quantum computer runs a quantum annealing algorithm to find the lowest points, corresponding to optimal or near optimal solutions, in a virtual “energy landscape.” Every additional qubit doubles the search space of the processor.

At 1000 qubits, the new processor considers 21000 possibilities simultaneously, a search space which dwarfs the 2512 possibilities available to the 512-qubit D-Wave Two. In fact, the new search space contains far more possibilities than there are particles in the observable universe.

The chips are fabricated partly in at D-Wave’s facilities in Palo Alto, and partly at Cypress Semiconductor’s wafer foundry in Bloomington, Minnesota.

While D-Wave’s previous generation processor ran at a temperature close to absolute zero, the new processor runs 40% colder. The lower operating temperature enhances the importance of quantum effects, which increases the ability to discriminate the best result from a collection of good candidates.​

Through a combination of improved design, architectural enhancements and materials changes, noise levels have been reduced by 50% in comparison to the previous generation. The lower noise environment enhances problem-solving performance while boosting reliability and stability.

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