Ion Azure for Quantum Computing on Microsoft Azure

Ion Azure for Quantum Computing on Microsoft Azure is a game-changer for developers and researchers.

It's a cloud-based platform that allows you to run, test, and debug quantum computing applications on a scalable and secure infrastructure.

With Ion Azure, you can access a wide range of quantum computing tools and services, including Q# and Cirq, two popular quantum programming languages.

These tools enable you to write, simulate, and execute quantum circuits, and even run machine learning and optimization algorithms on a quantum computer.

Ion Azure is integrated with Azure services like Azure Storage and Azure Event Grid, making it easy to store and manage your quantum data and applications.

This integration also enables you to scale your quantum computing workloads with ease, using Azure's robust infrastructure and management capabilities.

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Microsoft's Azure Quantum has made significant advancements in hardware development. They're working on a topological quantum computer with qubits that are inherently resistant to error.

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In September 2023, Azure Quantum researchers found evidence consistent with the creation and control of Majorana quasiparticles for topological quantum computing. This breakthrough has the potential to revolutionize quantum computing.

Microsoft has introduced three levels of implementation for quantum computing: foundational (noisy intermediate-scale qubits), resilient (reliable logical qubits), and scale (quantum supercomputers). These levels provide a clear roadmap for the development of quantum computing.

In 2024, Microsoft applied a qubit virtualization system to Quantinuum's trapped ion quantum computer to create 12 logical qubits, the most reliable logical qubits on record at the time. This achievement demonstrates the power of qubit virtualization in improving quantum computing capabilities.

Microsoft and Photonic also performed a teleported CNOT gate between qubits physically separated by 40 meters. This experiment confirmed remote quantum entanglement between T-centers, a crucial requirement for long-distance quantum communication.

For your interest: Azure Quantum

Error Mitigation and Optimization is a crucial aspect of achieving reliable results on Azure Quantum. You can specify the error-mitigation configuration when submitting a job, which is essential for Aria and Forte systems.

If you don't pass in the error-mitigation parameter, the target machine will use its default setting, which is enabled for Aria and Forte systems. This means you can either opt for the default setting or customize it according to your needs.

To configure the noise parameters for the emulator, you need to connect to Azure Quantum, select the target machine, and then specify the error-mitigation configuration. This step is vital for ensuring accurate results.

By passing in the error-mitigation configuration, you can ensure that your job is executed with the right settings, which is particularly important for Aria and Forte systems.

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Ion Azure is a powerful tool that offers a range of features and capabilities to help you with your quantum computing needs.

The Quantum simulator is a GPU-accelerated idealized simulator that supports up to 29 qubits, allowing you to preflight jobs before running them on an actual quantum computer.

This simulator uses the same set of gates as IonQ's quantum hardware, making it a great place to test and refine your jobs before moving them to a real quantum computer.

You can run simulations using the following settings: Job type: Simulation, Data Format: ionq.circuit.v1, Target ID: ionq.simulator, and Target Execution Profile: QIR Base.

The Forte Quantum Computer is a high-performing commercially available trapped-ion quantum computer. It's available in Private Preview on Azure Quantum, and for more information, you can check out IonQ Forte (ionq.com).

IonQ Forte has a 32-qubit software-configurable system, which is impressive. This system is available in Private Preview on Azure Quantum.

Debiasing is enabled on the Forte system by default, and submitted jobs are subject to debiasing-based pricing. For more information about debiasing and how to disable/enable the service, see Error mitigation.

Here are the key settings for IonQ Forte:

In Q#, the output of a quantum measurement is a value of type Result, which can only take the values Zero and One. This is because IonQ builds a histogram from the returned values, so it restricts the return type to Result to simplify creating this histogram.

IonQ's quantum simulator supports up to 29 qubits, allowing you to preflight jobs before running them on an actual quantum computer. This simulator uses the same set of gates that IonQ provides on its quantum hardware.

You can specify a quantum circuit using an abstract set of quantum gates, called qis, which allows flexibility and portability when writing an algorithm. This abstract set of gates is the default behavior.

However, in advanced usage cases, you might want to define a circuit directly on native gates to be closer to the hardware and bypass optimization. The native gate set is the set of quantum gates that are physically executed in the quantum processor.

To use the native gate set when submitting Qiskit jobs to Azure Quantum, you need to specify the gateset parameter when initializing the backend. The gateset parameter can take two values: qis for the abstract gates or native for the IonQ hardware native gates.

The gateset parameter is optional, but specifying it can help you define a circuit that is closer to the hardware, resulting in more efficient execution.

With Ion Azure, you can integrate with various tools and services to enhance your data engineering and analytics workflow.

You can use Azure Databricks to integrate with Ion Azure, which allows for seamless data processing and analytics.

Ion Azure supports integration with Azure Blob Storage, making it easy to store and manage large datasets.

Azure Functions can be used to trigger data processing pipelines in Ion Azure, enabling real-time data processing and analytics.

By using Azure Event Grid, you can subscribe to events in Ion Azure and trigger custom actions or workflows.

Ion Azure also supports integration with Azure Active Directory (AAD), allowing for secure and controlled access to your data and analytics resources.

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Quantum computing is a complex field, but let's break it down to the basics.

Azure Quantum is a cloud-based platform that offers several modalities from five participating quantum computing companies, allowing developers to compare different technologies.

It's a robust platform that provides a wide range of hardware and software tools for various quantum research levels, from curious investigators to experienced quantum scientists.

The platform has evolved significantly since its inception in 2019 and is designed to support general applications.

Azure Quantum Elements is a specialized platform within Azure Quantum that focuses on chemistry and materials science, using high-performance computing, AI-accelerated computing, and quantum tools for advanced research and modeling.

This platform has several advanced features, including Generative Chemistry AI to design and optimize new molecules.

Accelerated DFT is also used to solve quantum mechanical chemistry problems, determining molecular properties.

Azure Quantum Elements is not limited to chemistry and materials science, with Microsoft expecting other scientific domains, such as life sciences, to find solutions on this platform.

In fact, a joint Microsoft and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory research project used AI and HPC to model 32 million new candidate materials, successfully screening them for a more efficient rechargeable battery material.