Abstract
Digital computers are based on devices that can take on only two states, one of which is denoted by 0 and the other by 1. By concatenating several 0s and is together, 0-1 combinations can be formed to represent as many different entities as desired. A combination containing a single 0 or 1 is called a bit. In general, n bits can be used to distinguish among 2n distinct entities and each addition of a bit doubles the number of possible combinations. Computers use strings of bits to represent numbers, letters, punctuation marks, and any other useful pieces of information. In a classical computer, the processing of information is done by logic gate. A logic gate maps the state of its input bits into another state according to a truth table. Quantum computers require quantum logic, something fundamentally different to classical Boolean logic. This difference leads to a greater efficiency of quantum computation over its classical counterpart.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2001 Springer Basel AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Hardy, Y., Steeb, WH. (2001). Quantum Bits and Quantum Computation. In: Classical and Quantum Computing. Birkhäuser, Basel. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8366-5_17
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8366-5_17
Publisher Name: Birkhäuser, Basel
Print ISBN: 978-3-7643-6610-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-0348-8366-5
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive