Researchers bring together the tools of chemistry and physics to the develop rules for designing tunable molecular qubits. Credit: Image by University of Chicago.

A ground-up approach to qubit design leads to a new framework for creating versatile, highly tailored quantum devices.

Advances in quantum science have the potential to revolutionize the way we live. Quantum computers hold promise for solving problems that are intractable today, and we may one day use quantum networks as hackerproof information highways.

The realization of such forward-looking technologies hinges in large part on the qubit — the fundamental component of quantum systems. A major challenge of qubit research is designing them to be customizable, tailored to work with all kinds of sensing, communication, and computational devices.

Scientists have taken a major step in the development of tailored qubits. In a paper published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the team, which includes researchers at