Equivalent number of flops for quantum computers?

[Jack190]

Hi. Could somebody tell me how many floating point operations a reasonably advanced (say 1 million qubit) quantum computer could process if we ever could engineer one?

I know this question will make quantum physics experts uneasy, since quantum computers don't process flops serially as in classical computing, but can we make any kind of comparison in very crude/rough quantitive terms?

In a book from my school library it said a quantum computer with only about 100 qubits would outperform today's supercomputers. But I'd like to know what kinds of numbers are we thinking for a large scale quantum computer - leaving aside the issue of feasibility of engineering a quantum computer / quantum error correction / algorithms design etc,. So please could anyone explain to me, what kinds of numbers of basic operations could a large scale quantum computer (with sufficient error correction) deal with - is it like 10^25 flops or 10^40 flops or 10^100 flops or is this crazy?
Thanks a lot for your help!

 

[KataKoniK]

Hello there! As a quantum physicist, I can understand your curiosity about the potential capabilities of a large-scale quantum computer. However, it is important to note that the concept of "floating point operations" or "flops" does not directly apply to quantum computing.

In classical computers, floating point operations refer to the manipulation of numbers represented in decimal or binary form. However, in quantum computing, information is stored and processed in quantum bits or qubits, which can exist in multiple states simultaneously. This means that the number of possible operations that can be performed on qubits is exponentially larger than classical bits.

Therefore, it is not possible to make a direct comparison between the processing power of a classical computer and a quantum computer in terms of flops. However, it is estimated that a quantum computer with 1 million qubits could potentially perform calculations and solve problems that are currently beyond the capabilities of classical supercomputers.

To give you an idea, a quantum computer with 50 qubits could perform approximately 10^16 operations per second, while a classical supercomputer can perform around 10^13 operations per second. This shows the potential of quantum computing to greatly outperform classical computing in terms of processing power.

However, it is important to keep in mind that the development of a large-scale quantum computer is still in its early stages and there are many challenges to overcome, such as quantum error correction and algorithm design. So while it is difficult to give a specific number, it is safe to say that a fully functional 1 million qubit quantum computer could potentially process an incredibly large number of operations per second.

I hope this helps to answer your question. Keep exploring and learning about quantum computing, it is a fascinating field with endless possibilities.

 

[piercas]

I understand your curiosity about the potential computational power of quantum computers. However, it is important to note that comparing the number of floating point operations (flops) between classical and quantum computers is not a straightforward task. This is because quantum computers operate on a fundamentally different level, using quantum bits (qubits) instead of classical bits.

In classical computing, flops are a measure of the number of arithmetic operations (additions, subtractions, multiplications, and divisions) that a computer can perform per second. However, in quantum computing, qubits can exist in multiple states simultaneously, allowing for parallel processing and exponentially increasing the computational power. This means that a quantum computer with a relatively small number of qubits can potentially outperform even the most powerful classical supercomputers.

Furthermore, the performance of a quantum computer is not solely determined by the number of qubits, but also by the quality of those qubits and the ability to control and manipulate them accurately. This is why the development of efficient error correction techniques is crucial for scaling up quantum computers.

In terms of numbers, it is difficult to give a specific equivalent number of flops for a quantum computer with a certain number of qubits. However, some estimates suggest that a quantum computer with 1 million qubits could potentially perform up to 10^50 flops, which is significantly higher than the current capabilities of classical supercomputers.

It is also worth mentioning that the potential applications of quantum computers go beyond traditional computational tasks and can offer solutions to complex problems in fields such as chemistry, materials science, and cryptography. So while it is difficult to give a precise comparison in terms of flops, it is clear that quantum computers have the potential to revolutionize computing and problem-solving in a variety of fields.