Quantum cloning

It is impossible to make perfect copies or 'clones' of unknown quantum states, but approximate copies could still have many uses in quantum computing. A computer is a physical device that consists of components that are all subject to the laws of physics. Since computers deal exclusively in information, there is a close connection between information and physical systems. But what happens if the components inside the computer become so small that they must be described by quantum mechanics rather than classical physics? The seemingly unstoppable decrease in the size of transistors and other components will force the computer industry to confront this question in the near future. However, a small band of far-sighted physicists has been thinking about these problems for almost two decades. Starting with the work of Paul Benioff, Richard Feynman, David Deutsch and Charles Bennett in the mid-1980s, the field of 'quantum information' has grown to become one of the most exciting areas of modern physics. These early pioneers realized that the representation of information by quantum systems, such as single electrons or photons, was an opportunity rather than a problem. (U.K.)