Nuestra NEBRIJA 34 - julio 2020

35 analogy of light, combining bulbs of various intensities and turning the switches on and off according to different patterns, one could try to simulate the effect of a dimmable bulb, but it would be impossible to achieve all the intermediate values, or the number of bulb combinations would be so large that it would be unfeasible to install it. The same is true with quantum processors: each basic operation of a quantum processor provides us with multiple possible different states, while in the basic operations of a classic processor only two states fit. Therefore, the most important thing of a quantum processor is not only if it is faster or not, but also if it is capable of representing more realities than a classic processor. An example with direct impact on our society is the optimization of the search for treatments in the health area, where the first applications that take advantage of this emerging technology can already be found in the more accurate modelling of elements such as proteins, and whose performance cannot be matched easily with classic processors. A recent case is that of D-Wave, a pioneering company in the sector that has made a quantum processor available to researchers free of charge in order to find a cure for covid-19, reducing analysis times. For its part, IBM is using its quantum processor in projects that, using custom algorithms, simulate the possible response of the virus to existing drugs. Although both companies also offer the use of their quantum processors online for application in private companies, the technology is not yet mature enough, so it is not cautious to think that the image that exists today of these processors will be definitive, nor that everything is already solved, despite hearing announcements like that of Google talking about quantum supremacy. Having clarified the novelty at the level of processing and the repercussions on our society, one still must know what work areas currently exist. To understand it, we must think that the quantum processor has multiple layers and auxiliary systems that allow it to function properly, and that not all of them require a deep knowledge of the principles of quantum physics. In the first place, as a base layer, we would find the quantum chip, at approximately -273ºC, whose improvements do focus on physical and chemical processes that are only studied at a practical level in a small number of research centers and private companies. The next layer consists of an interface that captures the information from that chip and passes it to the electrical domain. At this point, a wide spectrum of opportunities opens up, since a microarchitecture is defined with a set of quantum instructions -different from the operations that classic processors support- and that require specific training to adapt to this new paradigm. To understand it simply: all arithmetic operations, such as sums and products, must be redefined. Furthermore, compilers of quantum processors are also under development. These are in charge of translating the programs that are executed in the quantum processors from a language understandable by humans to electrical impulses to carry out the appropriate quantum instructions. Finally, it is necessary to design programs that take advantage of the potential of superimposed states and intensive computing. All the tasks related to the layers between the interface and the final program represent an opportunity for any engineering professional to participate from an early stage in defining a new computing model. For this, Nebrija University makes a double commitment to train professionals in this sector through the proposal of the Master's Degree in Quantum Computing, and a line of research that works to improve the reliability of these processors, in which members of the ARIES Research Center take part, as well as students from the Doctoral School and students from the last year of the Bachelor's Degree in Computer Engineering. T he first applications that take advantage of quantum processor technology can already be found in the health area