By encoding quantum information using topology, researchers have found a way to resist the noise that usually disrupts entangled states, potentially transforming the reliability of quantum tech.
- More Reliable Quantum Devices – Stabilizing quantum information could make quantum computers and communication networks faster, more secure, and easier to scale for everyday use.
- Advances in Medical Imaging and AI – Preserving quantum information may improve imaging precision and enhance AI-based diagnostics, supporting more accurate and efficient healthcare.
- Enhanced Data Security – Noise-resistant quantum networks could enable ultra-secure communication systems, offering stronger protection against cyber threats and data breaches.
Breakthrough in Quantum Stability
Researchers from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa (Wits University), working with Huzhou University in China, have discovered a way to protect quantum information from environmental interference. This is a breakthrough that could lead to more reliable quantum technologies.
In a study published on March 26 in Nature Communications, the team showed that certain quantum states can retain their essential information even when exposed to environmental “noise” that would normally disrupt them.
“What we’ve found is that topology is a powerful resource for information encoding in the presence of noise,” says Professor Andrew Forbes from the Wits School of Physics.
Entanglement: Fragile Yet Fundamental
Quantum entanglement, the strange connection that allows particles to instantly affect each other regardless of distance, is central to many quantum technologies. While it’s fascinated scientists and inspired headlines, Albert Einstein famously dismissed it as “spooky action at a distance.”
But despite its promise, entanglement is extremely fragile. In real-world settings, it can quickly break down due to background light, stray signals, imperfect detectors, or lost photons. These forms of environmental noise can sever the connection between entangled particles, making them useless for transmitting quantum information.
A Shift in Strategy: Preserve the Information, Not the Connection
To overcome this, many strategies have been put forward to try and preserve the entanglement, but so far with very limited success. The Wits team has shown that this approach can be manipulated, allowing the entanglement to remain fragile and instead preserve the quantum information.
“We are carefully engineering the quantum wave function – a mathematical description that captures all possible states of a quantum system – to preserve quantum information that remains stable even when the underlying quantum connections start to break down,” says Forbes.
Topology Saves the Day
The researchers discovered that by engineering quantum states with specific topological properties, they could preserve quantum information even when the entanglement between particles begins to break down.
“What we’ve found is that topology is a powerful resource for information encoding in the presence of noise. It has a large encoding alphabet that is completely immune to the noise so long as just some entanglement persists.”
Digitizing Quantum Information
Prof. Robert de Mello Koch explains that this manipulation of the quantum waveform topology can be seen as a form of “digitization of quantum information” made possible by the discrete nature of the topological observables, which only take on integer values, such as –2, –1, 1 and 2.
“Discrete signals are always more robust against the effects of noise. This follows because for discrete signals the noise must be able to flip the signal between two discrete states before any effect is registered.”
The team believes that just as digital technology has enabled successful classical computation and communication, so too will digital quantum signals allow successful quantum computation and communication under realistic conditions without the need for compensating strategies.
Next-Gen Quantum Tech Applications
“This breakthrough could be used to overcome noise in quantum computers as well as global quantum networks, for the next generation of quantum technologies. It can be especially valuable in creating advanced medical imaging technologies and more powerful artificial intelligence systems harnessing entanglement,” says Forbes.
Reference: “Topological rejection of noise by quantum skyrmions” by Pedro Ornelas, Isaac Nape, Robert de Mello Koch and Andrew Forbes, 26 March 2025, Nature Communications.
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-58232-4
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