After months of testing, the Czech Republic’s first quantum computer is now fully operational in Ostrava at the National Supercomputing Center of the Technical University of Ostrava (VSB – Technical University of Ostrava). It is already attracting strong interest from researchers in healthcare, chemistry, and physics.

The machine is highly sophisticated, maintaining an internal temperature even lower than that of outer space. Problems that would take conventional computers years to solve can potentially be completed in seconds.

“We had to carry out extensive testing and verification to ensure that all technologies worked properly, including the cooling systems and the quantum chip itself. All of these tests have now been completed. Today, we can say that the machine is fully operational,” said Vít Vondrák, Director of the National Supercomputing Center.

“This represents an entirely new direction. We are certainly not the only institution in Europe or the world working on this technology, but we are among the pioneers and have made significant progress. Researchers from other countries visit us to learn how we address these challenges,” Vondrák added.

To illustrate the difference, while a traditional supercomputer can rapidly read one book after another in a library, a quantum computer can effectively process the entire library simultaneously—and do so extremely quickly.

A Future Built on Precision

The first users are already expressing interest in applications such as developing new materials, advanced computational chemistry, and optimizing energy transmission.

“Quantum computers are particularly well suited to solving complex combinatorial problems, such as directing energy exactly where it is needed,” explained Branislav Jansík, who oversees the supercomputing services.

Another important application is research into Alzheimer’s disease and the longevity of the human brain.

“These are problems involving an enormous number of variables and require extensive computational modeling,” Jansík said.

According to him, the future of quantum computing lies not only in its extraordinary speed but also in its precision. Classical computers often require scientists to simplify highly complex problems, producing only approximate solutions.

“Those approximate solutions can then be solved using classical computers, but the answers remain only approximately correct. Quantum computers have the potential to provide exact answers,” Jansík concluded.

The National Supercomputing Center expects demand for the Czech Republic’s first quantum computer to continue growing, with researchers from other European countries already expressing interest in using the system.

Source: Science and Technology