Microsoft touts its recently unveiled Majorana 1 as the the world’s first quantum chip capable of hyper-fast computing in the near-term future, refuting experts’ prediction that quantum computing still requires decades of innovation.
The new chip is powered by Topological Core architecture, which Microsoft claims offers “a clear path to fit a million qubits on a single chip that can fit in the palm of one’s hand.” This million qubit threshold is the milestone that researchers see as enabling quantum computing to drive major enterprise-level problem-solving – and to exponentially surpass even today’s most advanced supercomputers.
Microsoft technical fellow Chetan Nayak noted that without this path to a million qubits, “you’re going to hit a wall before getting to the scale at which you solve the really important problems that motivate us. We have actually worked out a path to a million.”
To introduce the underlying technology to the scientific community, Microsoft recently published an article in Nature that details how company researchers both created and measured the topological qubit’s properties.
Yet an array of experts has expressed doubts about the software giant’s claim, with some claiming that it cannot be legitimate
Sergey Frolov, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Pittsburg, told Gestalt IT that the science underpinning Microsoft’s Majorana quantum chip remains unproven. “Microsoft Quantum has based their hardware effort on the physics of topological superconductors and Majorana particles,” he said. “But neither concept is established by scientists; it is still debated. You cannot build a technology before demonstrating the science for it, and they have not done that. You can see that from the trail of scientific retractions, expressions of concerns and critical comments that their project keeps generating.” The retractions he mentions refer to a 2018 paper that Microsoft researchers pulled back in response to criticism of its scientific claims, though they later revised the work in response to the feedback.
Henry F. Legg, a Lecturer in theoretical physics at the University of St. Andrews, published research stating that “we show that the TGP, ‘passed’ by Microsoft Quantum lacks a consistent definition of ‘gap’ or ‘topological’, and even utilises different parameters when applied to theoretical simulations compared to experimental data.” Furthermore, Microsoft’s claim “that their devices have a ‘high probability of being in the topological phase’ is not reliable and must be revisited.”
Simone Severini, Amazon’s head of quantum technologies, also raised doubts about Microsoft’s claims. In an email to AWS CEO Andy Jassy, obtained by Business Insider, he opined that that the Microsoft research about its quantum developments published in Nature did not fully support the Majorana chip’s technology.
Microsoft has rebutted these skeptics. “Discourse and skepticism are all part of the scientific process,” said a Microsoft spokesperson in comments published in The Register. “That is why we are dedicated to the continued open publication of our research, so that everyone can build on what others have discovered and learned. In fact, we brought over 100 scientists and physicists together recently to spend the day with us going over our research.”
A major event pertaining to this debate will take place at the APS Global Physics Summit, which runs March 16-25 in Anaheim, CA. Microsoft researcher Chetan Nayak will present the company’s progress in quantum computing, including details of the new Majorana chip. There’s no doubt that both skeptics and supporters will closely analyze Nayak’s presentation and likely continue the debate.
