Researchers from the Yokohama National University have teleported quantum information securely within the confines of a diamond. The study has big implications for quantum information technology—the future of sharing and storing sensitive information. The researchers published their results on June 28, 2019, in Communications Physics.
"Quantum teleportation permits the transfer of quantum information into an otherwise inaccessible space," said Hideo Kosaka, a professor of engineering at Yokohama National University and an author on the study. "It also permits the transfer of information into a quantum memory without revealing or destroying the stored quantum information."
The inaccessible space, in this case, consisted of carbon atoms in diamond. Made of linked, yet individually contained, carbon atoms, a diamond holds the perfect conditions for quantum teleportation.
A carbon atom holds six protons and six neutrons in its nucleus, surrounded by six spinning electrons. As the atoms bond into a diamond, they form a notably strong lattice. However, diamonds can have complex defects, such as when a nitrogen atom exists in one of two adjacent vacancies where carbon atoms should be. This defect is called a nitrogen vacancy center.
Surrounded by carbon atoms, the nucleus structure of the nitrogen atom creates what Kosaka calls a nanomagnet.