Cataclysmic Era: I can unlock the tech tree

The Xia Kingdom, located within the first ring road of its capital city.

The councilor looked at Fang Xu with a solemn expression.

"Academician Fang, were you referring to the quantum computing supercomputing center?"

It wasn't that he doubted it, but rather that China had been researching quantum computers for a very long time.

Some remarkable results have also been achieved in the laboratory.

For example, Chapter Nine.

As a prototype optical quantum computer with 76 qubits, Jiuzhang has received countless accolades.

With its nine-chapter quantum computer, China even became the second country in the world to achieve quantum supremacy.

But the reality is not so optimistic.

The Nine Chapters quantum computer does not use common superconducting circuits, ion traps, or semiconductor chips. Instead, it has pioneered another path, using photons as qubits to manipulate photons to achieve computation.

But that's a shortcut.

At least for now, optical quantum computers do not have the potential to become general-purpose quantum computers.

The reason is simple: photons have good coherence and long coherence time, which are advantages of optical quantum computers, and also the key to their success.

But why is the coherence good?

It's very simple: the interaction between photons and the environment is extremely weak.

This also led to another consequence.

Humans, at least for now, have great difficulty in precisely manipulating photons.

This has created a very awkward situation.

It cannot achieve universal quantum computing.

In other words, it cannot be programmed; it can only perform calculations for specific projects.

The Nine Chapters computer achieved an incredibly fast computing speed in the classic mathematical algorithm Gaussian boson sampling, but it was completely useless for other projects.

As a project that Xia Guo has invested a great deal of effort in researching, the councilor is naturally aware of the drawbacks of the Nine Chapters and the difficulty of realizing a general-purpose quantum computer.

Therefore, Representative Li expressed his doubts about what Fang Xu said.

Faced with the councilor's question, Fang Xu shrugged lightly: "Councilor, don't ask me, I know absolutely nothing about this stuff."

"You can have someone verify this; these are Professor Lü's exact words."

After a moment of contemplation, he added softly, "Furthermore, he said that the quantum supercomputing center plays a decisive role in the future of Xia Kingdom."

The councilor's expression immediately became more serious.

"Okay! I understand!"

"In that case..." A resolute glint flashed in Councilor Li's eyes, "Let the construction team start construction according to the blueprints, and start producing all kinds of equipment and parts first."

"As for verification, I'll go to the Academy of Sciences myself tomorrow!"

……

Xia Guo Academy of Sciences.

As a leading expert in quantum computing and artificial intelligence, Mo Zeyang stared intently at the computer screen in front of him.

A researcher standing nearby, witnessing this, couldn't help but shake his head with a wry smile: "Academician Mo, are you still struggling with superconducting circuits and quantum computers?"

The researcher's voice interrupted Mo Zeyang's train of thought.

He turned to look at the researcher standing beside him, staring at the computer screen, and frowned slightly: "Of course."

The researcher's eyes grew increasingly bitter, and he sighed softly, "Academician Mo, China's funding for quantum computing is dwindling."

"Since the crisis of the sun, most of Xia's scientific research funding has been given to Professor Lü Yongchang."

"Plus, with a portion of the funds going to the original nine chapters, our current funds are already..."

The researcher paused for a moment, then spoke again, "How about we go and research optical quantum computers?"

"No!"

"Only superconducting quantum computers can realize artificial intelligence!"

"But, but we don't have the funding!" The researcher sighed heavily. "Academician Mo, look at how many people have already chosen to leave..."

Mo Zeyang's face darkened.

"I... I'll wait a bit longer. Maybe I can solve this circuit architecture problem."

Mo Zeyang's voice was full of insecurity.

"Knock knock knock!"

A knock came at the door.

Mo Zeyang turned his head to look in the direction of the door, then whispered to the researcher beside him, "Go open the door and take a look."

Watching the researcher walk towards the door, a hint of doubt flashed in Mo Zeyang's eyes.

At this time, who would come to their "poor place"?

"The Speaker of the Legislative Council?!"

"What brings you here?!"

The researcher's exclamation left Mo Zeyang stunned.

Then, a familiar face appeared before him.

"Academician Mo?" Councilor Li said with a smile, "I hope my sudden visit hasn't bothered you?"

Mo Zeyang hurriedly stood up from his chair, looking at Councilor Li with a restrained expression: "Speaker, please...please sit down."

Seeing the Speaker sit down, Mo Zeyang's expression became slightly more relaxed: "Speaker, you suddenly came to see me because..."

The councilor smiled and took a USB drive out of his pocket.

"Look at the architecture diagram inside."

Mo Zeyang took the USB drive with a puzzled look and plugged it into the office computer.

The file was very large, and he waited quite a while before he could open it.

Upon seeing the intricate architectural diagram, Mo Zeyang's expression changed slightly!

"This is... an architecture diagram of a superconducting quantum computer?" Mo Zeyang's voice trembled slightly. "Where did you get this?"

"So? Is this thing reliable?"

The councilor did not answer Mo Zeyang's question, but instead asked in a low voice.

Mo Zeyang fell silent.

After a long silence, he said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Speaker, I...I don't know."

"Hmm?" Councilor Li raised an eyebrow slightly. "Academician Mo, you're a leading expert in superconducting circuits and quantum computing in China. Can't you see that either?"

Mo Zeyang slowly shook his head, his eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and shock: "My research hasn't reached that point yet..."

After saying that, he took a deep breath and said with a firm look in his eyes, "However, I can tell you with certainty that this architecture diagram has solved a problem I have been working on recently."

The councilor's expression hardened, and he nodded slightly: "Okay, I understand."

Seeing the Speaker fall into deep thought and stop speaking, Mo Zeyang felt as if his heart was being scratched by a cat.

After hesitating for a long time, he couldn't hold back any longer and asked, "Speaker, can you tell me who created this organizational chart?"

Upon hearing Mo Zeyang's question, Councilor Li smiled faintly, moved his lips slightly, and uttered a name.

"Professor Lü?!" Mo Zeyang exclaimed in surprise. "I heard he's from the physics department?"

Councilor Li's smile deepened: "I heard from Fang Xu that this was something that Lü Yongchang spent ten days working on."