IBM Cracks Fusion Energy Code with Quantum Computing Breakthrough

IBM has made significant strides in fusion energy research using quantum computing. The company partnered with Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Cleveland Clinic to develop a new method for modeling how fusion plants produce and recover tritium, a rare radioactive fuel.

Tritium is created naturally when cosmic rays reach the upper atmosphere but its 12-year half-life results in relatively quick decay, making it scarce. The lack of tritium is a significant roadblock to implementing fusion as a power source.

The research team used IBM's quantum computing hardware to determine the nine specific molecular configurations of a molten salt called FLiBe (fluorine, lithium, and beryllium) which surrounds the fusion reaction. This helped them model how the molten salt behaves with and without tritium.

The breakthrough is crucial as nuclear fusion has enormous potential to provide energy. It combines atoms instead of splitting them like fission, reducing radioactive waste and environmental impact.