Researchers Devise Method to Reduce Noise in Quantum Computers

Technique uses quantum geometry to design pulses that suppress errors in qubits.

Mar. 25, 2026 at 8:18am

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Researchers at Virginia Tech have developed a method to reduce noise and errors in quantum computers by tailoring the shape of electromagnetic pulses used to put qubits into superposition. The approach is based on a quantum geometric framework that allows them to design pulses that suppress noise without compromising performance.

Why it matters

Reducing noise and errors is critical for scaling up quantum computers, which rely on the delicate quantum state of subatomic particles. This new technique provides a promising path forward to making large-scale, practical quantum computers a reality.

The details

The researchers, including graduate students Evangelos Piliouras and Hisham Amer, found that by viewing the pulse shape as a geometric object, they could adjust its curves and corners to suppress noise while still performing the desired quantum operations. This approach avoids the traditional trade-off between noise suppression and optimal pulse design.

  • The research was published last month in Nature Partner Journal Quantum Information.
  • The team verified their technique by running experiments on IBM's quantum computing hardware.

The players

Evangelos Piliouras

A graduate student at Virginia Tech who co-developed the noise reduction technique.

Ed Barnes

A physicist at Virginia Tech who collaborated with Piliouras on the research.

Hisham Amer

A Virginia Tech graduate student who verified the technique through experiments on IBM's quantum hardware.

IBM

The company whose quantum computing hardware was used to test the new noise reduction technique.

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What they’re saying

“We've been surprised multiple times by how simple and elegant the requirements for noise suppression become once we translate them into this geometric language.”

— Ed Barnes

“The blessing and the curse of quantum control is that you have infinitely many ways to achieve the same task, but nobody tells you the best way.”

— Evangelos Piliouras, Graduate Student

What’s next

With these performance improvements, the researchers believe we are one day closer to the premiere of large-scale, practical quantum computing.

The takeaway

This new quantum geometry-based technique for reducing noise and errors in quantum computers represents an important step forward in making quantum computing a reality, overcoming one of the key challenges that has held back progress in this field.