According to SciTechDaily, researchers from the Technical University of Munich, Princeton University, and Google Quantum AI have used a 58-qubit superconducting quantum processor to create a Floquet topologically ordered state that had only existed in theory until now. The team published their findings in Nature on September 10, 2025, revealing they directly visualized directed edge motions and developed a new interferometric algorithm to probe topological features. They observed the dynamic “transmutation” of exotic particles, a key prediction of these unusual quantum phases. The discovery marks a significant advancement in studying non-equilibrium quantum matter that classical computers struggle to simulate.
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What even is a non-equilibrium phase?
Here’s the thing about regular phases of matter – ice, water, steam – they’re all equilibrium states. They’re stable over time. But nature has this whole other category of weird stuff that only appears when you constantly poke and prod a system. Think of it like keeping a spinning top spinning forever rather than letting it settle down.
Floquet systems are basically quantum systems that get rhythmically zapped with external energy. This periodic driving creates patterns and behaviors that simply don’t exist in normal matter. It’s like discovering a new color that only appears when you’re moving really fast.
Why quantum computers are perfect for this
Classical computers hit a wall trying to simulate these highly entangled non-equilibrium states. The complexity grows exponentially. But quantum processors? They naturally operate in this realm. As Melissa Will, the PhD student who led the work, put it – these aren’t just computational devices anymore. They’re becoming full-blown experimental platforms.
And that’s the real breakthrough here. We’re not just getting faster calculations – we’re getting access to physical phenomena that were previously theoretical. The team actually watched exotic particles “transmute,” which is quantum physics speak for “doing things that should be impossible in normal reality.”
Where does this lead?
This opens up a whole new research paradigm. Quantum computers as laboratories could help us understand everything from fundamental physics to designing next-generation quantum materials. The published paper in Nature details their interferometric approach, which itself might become a standard tool for probing topological features.
But here’s what’s really exciting – we’re just scratching the surface. If 58 qubits can reveal phases we’ve never seen before, imagine what happens as these systems scale up. We might discover entire families of matter that rewrite our understanding of what’s physically possible.
The implications could stretch far beyond academic curiosity too. Understanding these exotic states might lead to new types of quantum memory or error correction methods. Basically, we’re watching quantum computing transition from a computational tool to a fundamental science instrument. And that’s way cooler than just factoring large numbers faster.
