Investing.com -- Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT ) introduced a quantum chip, Majorana 1, powered by a new Topological Core architecture. The company expects this technology to enable quantum computers to solve significant, industrial-scale problems in a matter of years, rather than decades.

Majorana 1 uses the world's first topoconductor, a breakthrough material that allows observation and control of Majorana particles. These particles facilitate the production of more reliable and scalable qubits, the building blocks of quantum computers. Microsoft believes that this new technology will pave the way for quantum systems that can scale to a million qubits and address complex industrial and societal issues.

The Majorana 1 processor's new architecture can fit a million qubits on a single chip. This capacity is crucial for quantum computers to provide transformative, real-world solutions such as breaking down microplastics into harmless byproducts or inventing self-healing materials for construction, manufacturing, or healthcare.

The topoconductor, a special category of material, can create a new state of matter – the topological state. This state can produce a more stable qubit that is fast, small, and digitally controlled, without the tradeoffs required by current alternatives. Microsoft researchers have published a paper in Nature detailing their creation of the topological qubit’s exotic quantum properties and their accurate measurement, a crucial step for practical computing.

The Majorana 1 chip and its Topological Core are designed for reliability, incorporating error resistance at the hardware level. The Microsoft team's new measurement approach allows for digital control of qubits, significantly simplifying quantum computing.

Microsoft's pursuit of a topological qubit design has led to the company's inclusion in a rigorous program by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The program evaluates whether innovative quantum computing technologies can build commercially relevant quantum systems faster than previously believed possible. Microsoft is one of two companies invited to the final phase of DARPA’s Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum (NASDAQ: QMCO ) Computing (US2QC) program.

Microsoft has also partnered with Quantinuum and Atom Computing to achieve scientific and engineering breakthroughs with today's qubits. Azure Quantum, a suite of integrated solutions by Microsoft, allows customers to leverage leading AI, high-performance computing, and quantum platforms to advance scientific discovery.

The next phase of quantum computing will require a quantum architecture capable of providing a million qubits or more and reaching trillions of fast and reliable operations. This goal is now within years, not decades, according to Microsoft.

The company has been able to create Majorana particles, which protect quantum information from random disturbance, and can reliably measure that information using microwaves. This new measurement approach simplifies the quantum computing process and the physical requirements to build a scalable machine.

The Majorana 1 quantum chip, which contains qubits and surrounding control electronics, fits neatly into a quantum computer that can be easily deployed inside Azure datacenters.

Microsoft's topological qubit architecture uses aluminum nanowires to form an H, with each H containing four controllable Majoranas and making one qubit. These H structures can be connected and laid out across the chip. The quantum chip works in an ecosystem with control logic, a dilution refrigerator that maintains qubits at extremely cold temperatures, and a software stack that can integrate with AI and classical computers.

Microsoft's topoconductor is made of indium arsenide, a material currently used in applications such as infrared detectors. The material is combined with superconductivity to create a hybrid. The company predicts that a scaled quantum computer will be able to predict materials with even better properties for building the next generation of quantum computers.

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