The Genesis of Quantum Information Science: The Nobel Prize in Physics 2022

The Nobel Prize in Physics 2022 was awarded jointly to Prof Alain Aspect (Université Paris-Saclay and École Polytechnique, France), Prof  John Clauser (J.F. Clauser & Assoc, Walnut Creek, CA, USA) and Prof Anton Zeilinger (University of Vienna, Austria) "for experiments with entangled photons, establishing the violation of Bell inequalities and pioneering quantum information science". Their results have cleared the way for new technology based upon quantum information.

One of the key phenomena underlying quantum mechanics is entanglement, when two or more particles are part of a shared destiny — what happens to one particle determines the fate of the other and vice versa. Albert Einstein famously referred to this phenomenon as “spooky action at a distance,” because entanglement ties the states of particles together even when separated by great distances. The work of Profs Aspect, Clauser and Zeilinger provides the practical methods and conclusive experimental measurements that underline the distinction between the quantum and classical worlds, showing that quantum objects can be related through entanglement in a way that is not possible with classical objects.

Beginning with the groundbreaking experimental demonstration of quantum entanglement, the research field of quantum information has been essentially established. The existence of quantum entanglement allows researchers to understand, generate and manipulate quantum states with more than one particle, which lays the foundation for quantum computation, as well as the scheme of quantum encryption. Nowadays, quantum information research has been introduced to various physical systems including optical circuits, superconducting electronic circuits, ion trap and solid-state crystals such as diamonds, and all these candidates are driven by the picture that quantum information has the potential to bring revolutionary changes towards modern computation, communication, and cryptography. We are knocking the door of the era of quantum information. And this all begin with the work of Profs Aspect, Clauser, Zeilinger and their colleagues.

Sources: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2022/prize-announcement/

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