Syllabus: GS3/ Science and Technology
Context
- Majorana particles are seen as a potential solution to the problem of decoherence in quantum computers, offering inherently stable and noise-resistant qubits.
Majorana Particle
- Majorana particles, or Majorana fermions, are hypothesized particles that are their own antiparticles.
- Due to their self-antiparticle nature, they cannot carry an electric charge.
- In 1937, physicist Ettore Majorana proposed the existence of the Majorana Particle.
- No fundamental Majorana particle has been directly found yet, but scientists have created quasiparticles in special superconducting materials that behave like Majoranas.
Significance
- Noise Resistance: Majorana modes allow quantum information to be stored nonlocally, with each qubit’s state split between two distant halves.
- Local disturbances cannot easily destroy the encoded information, making them naturally resistant to decoherence.
- Scalability: If experimentally realised, Majorana qubits could pave the way for simpler, more scalable quantum computers capable of solving problems beyond today’s reach.
| What is a Quasiparticle? – A quasiparticle is a concept used to describe how a group of particles interact in a system. – Quasiparticles are not actual particles, but rather a way to model the collective behavior of particles as if they were a single particle. – Example: Ripples in water are not particles themselves but behave like “waves” created by molecules moving together. Fundamentals of Particles – Particles are broadly classified as; 1. Fermions: These particles make up matter and have half-integer spins (e.g., electrons, protons, neutrons). 2. Bosons: These particles mediate fundamental forces between matter, such as photons for electromagnetic force and gluons for the strong force. Bosons have integer spins. – Fermions can be further categorized as: 1. Dirac Fermions: May or may not have mass but are distinct from their antiparticles. 2. Majorana Fermions: Fermions that are their own antiparticles (e.g., neutrinos are suspected Majorana fermions). |
Source: TH
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