The transfer of quantum information is a much more complex process than the traditional one that allows , to example, to view this news on your computer. However, research is progressing in this field and the latest news comes from the United States, where a research group of the Fermilab and Califormia Institute of Technology (Caltech for short) carried out the quantum teleportation of information to 44 km away with an accuracy of 90%. A result of great importance that suggests the possibility of creating quantum networks in the future at the city level and beyond.

Quantum teleportation at 44 km away: the result of the Caltech

First of all we need to make a premise: in the quantum field the term ?? teleportation ?? it has a slightly different meaning than the one normally employed, which makes one think of Star Trek and other sci-fi settings. In reality we speak of teleportation of the quantum state , which then corresponds in fact to physical teleportation.

To better understand what it is, think of an example like this: the author of this news and the reader have two completely identical blank sheets. They are so identical that they could be interchanged and no one would be able to say that this happened. Now let’s imagine instead that the author’s sheet has printed this news on it: if the ink were removed without leaving any trace and instead, it was affixed in a totally identical way on the reader sheet, the information would be teleported because it would not be possible to distinguish the “original” sheet from the destination one .

The example is deliberately simplistic and simplified, but wants to give the idea of ​​the underlying concept. In the quantum field two atoms that have the same state are identical in all respects , so much so that it has no it makes sense to speak of distinct atoms with their own identity, since it is not possible to distinguish them beyond their position in space. By virtue of this, transferring information from one atom to another is an operation indistinguishable from the exchange of the atoms themselves and for this reason we speak of teleportation.

The group of the Fermilab used commercial optical fiber , very similar to that used to build today’s networks, to transmit the information of quantum entanglement at a distance of 44 km. Of particular importance is the accuracy, equal to 90%, which suggests the possibility of create city-scale quantum networks once the technology has evolved sufficiently.

?? Are we very happy with these results ?? , said Panagiotis Spentzouris, head of the Fermilab quantum program and one of the authors of the study published on PRX Quantum . ?? This is a key achievement on the path to building a technology that will redefine how we communicate on a global scale.

The development of a quantum network will allow the exchange of information between companies or between different offices of the same company guaranteeing its confidentiality, for example, and it is for this reason that many public and private companies are investing large sums in this area.