'Super atoms': Rydberg excitations form ordered structures in a quantum gas due to long-range interactions
(Phys.org)—Future computers are expected to use the laws of quantum physics to accomplish certain tasks in the blink of an eye that require decades for present-day computers. Physicists at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching near Munich, have now gained fundamental insights into a particular kind of atomic ensemble – a so-called Rydberg gas – that might play a role in the future design of a quantum computer. They observed how "super atoms" formed in the gas and ordered themselves in geometric shapes such as triangles and squares. In future, the researchers intend to control the number and geometric configuration of these super atoms. That would be an important step towards a scalable system for quantum information processing.