Los Alamos National Laboratory February Tip Sheet
QUANTUM COMPUTING 101 While common digital computers are based on electron conductivity, quantum computers will manipulate individual atoms to perform many calculations at once by taking advantage of quantum physics. Now, Los Alamos scientists are publishing one of the first books on this new and intriguing field. The text reviews the very brief history of quantum computing, which came alive in 1994 with the discovery of the first quantum algorithm that can provide fast factorization of integers, representing a potential threat to modern cryptography. The book, titled "Introduction to Quantum Computers," to be published this June by World Scientific Publishing Co., deals in basic terms with logic gates and strategies for quantum error correction. The authors illustrate essential concepts and algorithms that will make it possible for a quantum computer to solve problems impossible for digital computers. The text is intended to draw into the exotic field a new generation of students and researchers who will help overcome the difficulties of quantum computation. Gary Kliewer, 505-665- 2085 / [email protected]
MANY HAPPY RETURNS When the Space Shuttle Endeavor landed Jan. 31, a Los Alamos scientist was on hand to pick up materials Endeavor retrieved from Mir and returned to Earth. Los Alamos is evaluating the suitability of the materials -- three different types of high-density crystals -- for future gamma ray detectors. Los Alamos has flown increasingly sophisticated gamma ray detectors in space since the first verification satellites in the '60s; currently Los Alamos has one aboard NASA's Lunar Prospector that is developing a mineral map of the moon. The crystals placed aboard Mir last September were exposed to cosmic rays, high-energy particles from space that can "activate" the crystals and generate a signal that has to be separated from a true gamma ray detection. Los Alamos researchers are now measuring the extent of activation, which would affect a detector's performance. Los Alamos also has earned a $525,000 NASA grant for a three-year effort to develop a detector from one of the crystals -- cadmium zinc telluride -- for possible future planetary exploration. Jim Danneskiold, 505-667-1640 / [email protected] OIL FIELD SHAKEDOWN
Scientists at Los Alamos are investigating the use of low-frequency seismic waves to help boost production in marginal oil fields. The Los Alamos researchers are taking their cue partly from experiments performed in Siberian oil fields over the last 15 years by researchers in the former Soviet Union. Soviet scientists applied seismic waves to oil fields and, in some cases, boosted production. Similar mixed success has been reported recently in private-sector tests performed in domestic U.S. oil fields. Los Alamos researchers, who are working to determine when and why the process works, have tried the concept on bench-top models using a variety of rocks and sands and have seen encouraging results. The Los Alamos researchers -- working in partnership with ten companies from the U.S. oil and gas industry -- aim to try the concept in the field soon. In addition, the scientists will develop computer models of the process to help aid the research. If seismic stimulation can boost oil production, the concept also could show promise in the field of environmental remediation -- shaking volatile organic compounds out of the earth for more effective pump-and-treat strategies. James Rickman, 505-665-9203 / [email protected]
For assistance call 505-667-7000
RSS