Quantum Day or “Q-Day,” while 5-10 years out, is coming faster than we would like and it represents the day that quantum computers will reliably use the super-positioning power of qubits (i.e., information bits that can assume multiple states at once) to compute the codes needed to break asymmetric encryptions.
Quantum technology has opened a whole new world of potential advances in secure communications, information technology and high precision sensors. This technology is poised to provide solutions to some of the most pressing challenges in health care, industry and security. Ion beams find application in developing the innovative materials needed for new quantum technologies. “The IAEA is fully engaged with worldwide initiatives in quantum technology,” said Aliz Simon, a nuclear physicist at the IAEA. “Ion beam accelerator techniques offer emerging opportunities to further explore and develop research in quantum technology.”
