ICT in our Lives Conference, Faculty of Commerce, Alexandria University, Egypt, Dec. 2017 Promising Real-Life Applications of Quantum Computing, © Rania Al-Maghraby, 2017 | 1 Promising Real-Life Applications of Quantum Computing Rania Al-Maghraby, MSc Owner & General Manager, OneWayForward Inc. rania@onewayforward.info Abstract: This paper explores the research areas of Quantum Computing, and the real-life applications in which this new field of research can transform human lives on earth. We first introduce the idea of Quantum Computing and how it is different from traditional computing, then we highlight main application areas and use cases of quantum technologies that will enhance people life and turn many experiments that had never been feasible before into a handy undertaking. The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the importance of Quantum Computing as a research area and the promising life changing applications that can come out of applied research in this field. Index Terms: Quantum Computing, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Applied Research I. INTRODUCTION Quantum Computing is a research field at its infancy, like those old days when you tried to program a code by writing without having the ability to run it actually on a real computer. The current state of the this field shows that it's still far from being in the reach of researchers' hand at a wide scale, because of the lab technologies is relies upon. Actual experiments are limited to certain research institutes and commercial companies who have invested in building real quantum processors within the environment necessary to apply quantum physics interactions. However, many developments can still be done from a research point of view by exploring different applications and developing relevant algorithms. "The story of quantum computers begins in 1981 with Richard Feynman, probably the most famous physicist of his time. At a conference on physics and computation at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Feynman asked the question: Can we simulate physics on a computer? The answer was—not exactly. Or, more precisely—not all of physics. One of the branches of physics is quantum mechanics, which studies the laws of nature on the scale of individual atoms and particles. If we try to simulate quantum mechanics on a computer, we run into a fundamental problem. The full description of quantum physics has so many variables that we cannot keep track of all of them on a computer." [1] So the main motive behind the idea of Quantum Computing emerged from two fold concern: the need to study real-world natural phenomena, and the limitations of the traditional computing capacity and ability to cope with the requirements to fulfill this need. The best way to simulate and study the physical nature is to use its components to do computations. The basis lies in quantum physics and mathematics sciences. II. BASIC IDEA A quantum processor is mainly consisting of particles that are acting in certain physical nature when subjected to certain physical conditions. Fig. 1 The Quantum Processor The Bloch sphere is a representation of a qubit (quantum bit), the fundamental building block of quantum computers. Qubits are made up of controlled particles and the means of control (e.g. devices that trap particles and switch them from one state to another). A qubit is the quantum version of a bit, and its quantum state can take values of |0>, |1>, or both at once, a phenomenon known as superposition. The half angle bracket notation |> is conventionally used to distinguish qubits.