Spin-encoded quantum computer near ultimate physical limits

Landauer’s bound is applicable to irreversible quantum operations. In this study, we showcased that the Doppler temperature manifests the existence of Landauer’s bound, which does not block a spin from (irreversibly) flipping with a tiny amount of energy via quantum tunneling. Verified by a spin–spin magnetic interaction experiment, this (energy) amount was determined to be only 1.25 times the theoretical value of Landauer’s bound. Based on Heisenberg’s principle, we defined information from a measuring perspective: one bit of information corresponds to the smallest error when quantifying the product of the measured energy uncertainty (delta E) and the measured time duration (delta t). We then illustrate an optically manipulated, spin-encoded, near-Landauer-bound, near-Heisenberg-limit quantum computer that encompasses this new definition of information. This study may represent the last piece of the puzzle in understanding both quantum Landauer erasure and Heisenberg’s quantum limit since a single spin is the smallest information carrier.