Chinese scientists have recently achieved the first quantum teleportation from the Earth surface up to a satellite in space. A milestone that could lead to a better and secure Internet services in the future. The scientists used the satellite to conveniently connect two points between Earth and space.
Long-distance quantum communication is one the key element to enhance large-scale communication networks and quantum computation. But earlier attempts with fiber networks to teleport them had shown limited success due to loss of photon in the fiber. Other attempts through use of light beams were only possible during the night due to daylight atmospheric turbulence.
Teleportation has always raised much interests and controversies among groups of scientists since the end of 20th century when the concept became a comical topic. With the first quantum teleportation breakthrough by the Chinese researchers, it has been demonstrated beyond doubt that teleportation is indeed possible and there is more room for improvement.
According to a team of scientists from China through their newly published paper on the teleportation feat, the major solution to the long-distance teleportation challenges is to make use of satellites to unite two distant points on the Earth with a reduced channel loss; this is because the photons’ transmission path is in the empty space. The greatest challenge to the worldwide quantum internet network is to essentially extend the teleportation range to cover all regions.
Chinese scientists have promised to use the quantum physics to extend the teleportation services in the future. The Micius satellite launched in space is equipped with photo-receiver which spots the quantum states of the individual photon sent from the Earth surface. The recent 300-mile teleportation of a photon is the first test that would develop the concept of teleportation.
Though the experiment is remarkable, the technology used still has limitations especially when transporting any element that is larger than a photon. The distance to teleport is also hard to quantify at the moment but the theory is still undergoing further developments. The experiment is a major step for further interesting findings in quantum teleportation.
