Physics & Astronomy Colloquium

ABSTRACT: The quantum computer is the ultimate in quantum technology: revolutionizing computer science by transforming otherwise intractable problems into efficiently solvable problems but requiring exquisite levels of quantum control with only the minutest tolerance of decoherence. I will use animated movies to explain how a quantum computer would function and explain our efforts to realize quantum computing on the surface of silicon. Then I will discuss our work on efficient algorithms for simulating Hamiltonian evolution on a quantum computer in the spirit of the first proposed application of a quantum computer by Richard Feynman.