Russia’s Quantum Computer Leaps to 70 Qubits
Scientists at the Lebedev Physical Institute have demonstrated a 70-qubit ion-based quantum computer, marking a notable step in Russia’s quantum technology roadmap.
Russia has reached a significant milestone in the development of quantum technologies. Researchers at the Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (FIAN) have demonstrated an ion-based quantum computer with a 70-qubit register. The advance expands the range of complex calculations the system can handle and improves their accuracy, bringing quantum computing closer to practical use rather than purely experimental setups.
Ions as Qubits
Earlier this week, a research team from FIAN’s Quantum Project presented a prototype quantum computer based on ytterbium ions. The demonstration took place as part of a control experiment tracking progress under Russia’s national quantum computing roadmap, which is coordinated by the state corporation Rosatom.
A 70-qubit quantum register means the system can simultaneously operate with an enormous number of quantum states. Unlike classical bits, qubits can exist in complex quantum states, making such machines promising for problems beyond the reach of traditional computers. Alongside scaling the register, the team also demonstrated high operational accuracy: 99.98 percent for single-qubit operations and 96.1 percent for two-qubit operations.
In Line With Global Trends
Nikolai Kolachevsky, an academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences and director of FIAN, said the 70-qubit milestone shows the team has learned to work with a substantial number of qubits.
Ekaterina Solntseva, director for quantum technologies at Rosatom, added that reaching 70 qubits combined with relatively high operational accuracy marks a new stage in the development of quantum computing, opening up more room for practical applications.
As a result, practical use of the new system may not be far off. Ilya Semerikov, a researcher at FIAN, noted that the achievement is an important step toward a transition to planar ion technologies, which are expected to significantly increase the computing power of future quantum systems.
The limits of supercomputer performance and computational accuracy are still far from being reached, but Russian scientists are moving steadily closer to them.
