Teleporting, Extracting, and Storing Energy From a Quasi-Vacuum on a Quantum Computer
ORAL
Abstract
Energy is essential for human life, and various technologies have been developed to extract it from natural sources such as water, wind, sunlight, and fuels. Equally important is the ability to store this energy for future use. Notably, the vacuum contains virtual particles with substantial energy, known as "zero-point energy." Extracting and storing zero-point energy from these virtual particles could be groundbreaking, yet no successful attempt has been made so far.
In 2008, researchers proposed a method to extract energy from the "vacuum" using quantum information science principles, known as "quantum energy teleportation" (QET). Although largely overlooked for over a decade, it was experimentally validated in 2023 using NMR systems and quantum computers. A primary limitation of QET is that the energy extracted from the "quasi-vacuum" fully dissipates into the classical measurement device, making it unusable for future applications.
Our work represents a significant breakthrough in overcoming this limitation. By employing "post-measurement state preparation," we activate an additional quantum register, allowing storage of the energy extracted from the quasi-vacuum. This approach prevents quantum energy from being lost, enabling it to be preserved and utilized in future applications based on user needs and quantum platform capabilities. We refer to this as the "enhanced QET protocol" and have demonstrated it on an IBM quantum computer. This advancement in storing and manipulating vacuum energy opens new avenues for future research and potential applications.
Looking ahead, numerous exciting opportunities await exploration. Future work can focus on increasing the amount of extractable and storable energy by designing more complex system Hamiltonians. Another promising direction is expanding the number of quantum registers for energy storage. Additionally, investigating how stored energy can initiate processes in fields such as chemistry and biology offers practical potential, as the protocol adapts easily to these domains. We anticipate a wide range of intriguing follow-up research.
In 2008, researchers proposed a method to extract energy from the "vacuum" using quantum information science principles, known as "quantum energy teleportation" (QET). Although largely overlooked for over a decade, it was experimentally validated in 2023 using NMR systems and quantum computers. A primary limitation of QET is that the energy extracted from the "quasi-vacuum" fully dissipates into the classical measurement device, making it unusable for future applications.
Our work represents a significant breakthrough in overcoming this limitation. By employing "post-measurement state preparation," we activate an additional quantum register, allowing storage of the energy extracted from the quasi-vacuum. This approach prevents quantum energy from being lost, enabling it to be preserved and utilized in future applications based on user needs and quantum platform capabilities. We refer to this as the "enhanced QET protocol" and have demonstrated it on an IBM quantum computer. This advancement in storing and manipulating vacuum energy opens new avenues for future research and potential applications.
Looking ahead, numerous exciting opportunities await exploration. Future work can focus on increasing the amount of extractable and storable energy by designing more complex system Hamiltonians. Another promising direction is expanding the number of quantum registers for energy storage. Additionally, investigating how stored energy can initiate processes in fields such as chemistry and biology offers practical potential, as the protocol adapts easily to these domains. We anticipate a wide range of intriguing follow-up research.
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Publication: arXiv preprint arXiv:2409.03973
Presenters
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Songbo Xie
North Carolina State University
Authors
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Songbo Xie
North Carolina State University
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Manas Sajjan
Purdue University, North Carolina State University, Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 & Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC, 2760
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Sabre Kais
North Carolina State University, Purdue University, Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 & Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC, 2760