Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers who used a commercial quantum computer learned that the energetic levels of the four-hydrogen linear molecule meet the requirements of singlet fission, a process that could boost the efficiency of solar cells.
The H1-1 quantum computer used for the study was developed by Quantinuum, formerly Honeywell International, ORNL said Friday.
The findings, which are published in the Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, show the potential of quantum computers as a simulation tool for scientific research.
To describe the quantum states of singlet fission and calculate energetics data, ORNL used a quantum computational solver created by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory based on the Peeters-Devreese-Soldatov approach.
They maximized the use of qubits in the H1-1 computer using a technique called qubit tapering, and through parallel implementation of the four circuits the system. The process could serve as a best practice to speed up the problem-solving process in scientific quantum computing, ORNL stated.
