International research team demonstrates new method to stabilize exotic quantum states using controlled random pulses in superconducting quantum processors

International research team demonstrates new method to stabilize exotic quantum states using controlled random pulses in superconducting quantum processors

(IN BRIEF) An international team of researchers has demonstrated a new method for stabilizing exotic quantum states by reducing the heating that typically occurs when quantum systems are periodically driven. Using a superconducting quantum processor with 78 qubits, the scientists applied carefully engineered sequences of random pulses that partially cancel out over time, slowing the buildup of energy within the system. This allowed them to track the system’s quantum entanglement over more than a thousand driving cycles, far beyond the capabilities of classical simulations. The work experimentally confirms earlier theoretical predictions developed at the Technical University of Munich and shows that structured randomness can be used to control complex quantum systems. The research involved collaborations between the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems, Imperial College London, and Peking University. The findings, published in Nature, could help advance quantum simulation and future quantum computing technologies by enabling stable, long-lived exotic quantum states.

(PRESS RELEASE) MUNICH, 9-Mar-2026 — /EuropaWire/ — Researchers from an international collaboration have demonstrated a new method for stabilizing exotic quantum states, addressing one of the key challenges in quantum simulation and quantum computing. The study reveals how carefully engineered random pulses can prevent quantum systems from overheating during periodic manipulation, allowing fragile quantum states to persist much longer than previously possible.

Exotic quantum states are of significant interest to scientists because they can encode and process information in ways that differ fundamentally from classical systems. Creating these states often requires periodically “shaking” a quantum system, a process known as driving. However, this technique typically causes the system to absorb energy over time, leading to heating that destroys the delicate quantum structures researchers aim to study.

In findings published in the journal Nature, the research team demonstrates that this heating can be dramatically reduced by introducing a controlled form of randomness. Using a superconducting quantum processor with 78 qubits, the scientists applied carefully designed sequences of random pulses. Unlike completely unstructured signals, these engineered patterns partially cancel each other out over time, significantly slowing the buildup of energy within the system.

The researchers were able to observe the system’s behavior by directly measuring quantum entanglement in the processor. This allowed them to follow the evolution of the quantum system through more than a thousand driving cycles. Achieving such detailed tracking would be impossible using classical computer simulations alone due to the enormous computational complexity involved.

The results demonstrate that randomness, when deliberately structured, can serve as a powerful tool for controlling complex quantum systems. By reducing heating, the approach enables the creation and stabilization of exotic quantum phases that could play an important role in future quantum technologies.

The theoretical foundation for the work was developed earlier by Hongzheng Zhao during a research visit to the Technical University of Munich’s School of Natural Sciences. At the time, Zhao was a doctoral student working with Professor Johannes Knolle at the Professorship for Theory of Quantum Matter. Zhao has since been appointed professor at Peking University.

The experimental validation was conducted by a research group led by Professor Heng Fan at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The team used the Chuang-tzu 2.0 superconducting quantum chip, which contains 78 qubits and represents a cutting-edge platform for quantum experimentation.

Additional collaborators in the project included researchers from the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems in Dresden and Imperial College London, highlighting the international scope of the study.

The research builds on earlier theoretical work exploring how spectral engineering and random multipolar driving can slow heating in periodically driven quantum systems. The latest experiments confirm those predictions and provide new insights into how complex quantum behavior can be controlled experimentally.

The findings were reported in the paper Prethermalization by Random Multipolar Driving on a 78-Qubit Superconducting Processor, published in Nature in February 2026. The theoretical groundwork for the research was previously detailed in Random Multipolar Driving Tunably Slow Heating Through Spectral Engineering, published in Physical Review Letters in 2021.

Publications

• Zheng-He Liu et al.: “Prethermalization by Random Multipolar Driving on a 78-Qubit Superconducting Processor”, published in Nature, February 5, 2026 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09977-x
• Hongzheng Zhao, Florian Mintert, Roderich Moessner, and Johannes Knolle: “Random multipolar driving: tunably slow heating through spectral engineering”, published in Phys. Rev. Lett. 126, 040601 (2021), DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.126.040601

Further information and links

• Prof. Johannes Knolle is a member of the Cluster of Excellence Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST).
• Quantum Technologies at TUM

Media Contacts:

Corporate Communications Center
Ulrich Meyer
presse@tum.de

Contacts to this article:

Prof. Dr. Johannes Knolle
Technical University of Munich
Professorship for Theory of Quantum Matter and Nanophysics
TUM School of Natural Sciences
j.knolle@tum.de

SOURCE: Technical University of Munich