Microsoft is currently behind in the race to develop the first commercially viable quantum computer, but the company’s researchers have cracked one part of the puzzle by successfully capturing a “Majorana quasiparticle,” a type of particle that can be used to produce qubits that are less prone to errors.



…to create and capture a Majorana particle has been an immensely difficult task for researchers. In order to accomplish the task, the experiment must be performed at a temperature of almost absolute zero, colder than deep space. Also, strong magnetic fields are required to allow alternative ways for electrons to organize themselves.

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Source: [H]ardOCP – Microsoft Quantum Computing Scientists Have Captured a Majorana Quasiparticle