The commercially available D-Wave computer has demonstrated its ability to perform increasingly complex tasks. But is it a real quantum computer?
A new round of research continues the debate over how much its
calculations owe to exotic quantum-physics phenomena. 'One side argues there is too much noise in the D-Wave system, which prevents consistent entanglement.
But in an adiabatic device, certain types of entanglement are not as
vital as they are in the traditional model of a quantum computer. Some
researchers are attempting to solve this conundrum by proving the
presence or absence of entanglement. If they show entanglement is
absent, that would be the end of the discussion. On the other hand, even
if some of D-Wave's qubits are entangled, this doesn't mean the device
is taking advantage of it. Another way to prove D-Wave's quantumness
would be to confirm it is indeed performing quantum, and not classical,
annealing. Lidar has published work to this effect, but that triggered opposition, and then a counter-point. The debate continues.
