{ *** This article is also published as Quantum Computing - The Emerging Strategic Dimension ***}
STRATEGIC SECURITY OF INDIA - IS IT IN QUANTUM COMPUTING ?
2019 IISS Military Balance published
its theme article titled Quantum Computing and Defence[i] with an
interesting statement, “The integration of quantum technologies
currently represents one of the most anticipated advances for armed forces, yet
their precise impact remains difficult to predict.” Its definitely in the
news especially this decade (2011-2019) which has advanced physics [ii]with
comprehensive new understanding for humanity. Although these changes are not as
profound as what happened in the first 30 years of last century [iii]
that transformed physics and our understanding of reality through twin blows of
Einstein’s Theory of Relativity and Heisenberg, Dirac, Schrodinger’s Quantum
Mechanics. But these are definitely profound enough to make many of us feel
that we are “in the middle of a paradigm shift”. A nation’s security needs to
be calibrated with the shift indicated in uncertain, unknown and even
deliberately vague concepts that are finding the media to influence and impact
key decision makers on Quantum Computing. It definitely requires comprehensive
investment and resources of a special kind to understand, develop, experiment
and operate in the quantum future of the world. How much the quantum future
world will evolve to? How soon? And in what ways? Crystal ball gazers may come
up with their versions of year 2030 world as chaotic, more organized, more
digital, zero-hunger, underground earth, Mars colonies, and what not. The
challenge however lies to take bets on technological changes emerging rapidly
and their impact on the way a nation’s security is designed or developed. This
is becoming a bigger challenge as the impact of the new technologies on the
world is rapidly multi-dimensional, unlike in the past such changes. Well, one
can argue that in the past also, with ICBMs delivering nukes or creation of a
cyberspace has impacted national security architecture in ways that could not
be fathomed when these technologies were developed.
Irrespective, we suggest quantum
computing promises to be transformative for world at large in multiple
dimensions and may actually create a new dimension of “quantum cyberspace”
that may be akin to cyberspace that we created in last 30 years or so, but will
be at scales that are at subatomic levels – mind boggling indeed. Military
Balance theme article identifies quantum computing as already given rise to
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), Quantum Cryptanalysis and Quantum Sensing that
will impact strategic security significantly. The US Government report [iv]on
Quantum Information Science (QIS) compares it with previous examples of QIS-related
technologies including semiconductor microelectronics, photonics, the global
positioning system (GPS) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Further, the
report recommends a science first approach to QIS and creating quantum smart
work force as two of its main policy directions.
If the promise and perils of
quantum computing, QIS or quantum technology are anything to compare with the
previous revolutionary technology of software, digital networks and new media
we are in for a creation of a new global substrate that will be at the
sub-atomic level. Let us call it the “quantum cyberspace”, to indicate it expands
the cyberspace to much deeper at the atomic and subatomic level and of course
it will different as it will be based on quantum computing based on what we are
calling quantum bits or qubits. Before we come to that, let us delve into
quantum computing for common reader to get a better understanding.
Quantum Computing
The Shannon’s information theory
that has been the basis of cybernetic revolution and has given birth to information
technology defines a measure of information in a message. It uses a way of
representing information as a series or arrays of switches which can be in two
states – on or off or 1 or 0. This definition led Shannon to revive a dormant
field of mathematical logic called Boolean algebra that works on what is called
a base 2 system of number representations. Contrast it to the base 10 or
digital system in use with 10 representations corresponding to 10 counting
numbers from 0 to 9. In the base 2 system or what is called binary system, we
need just two representations corresponding to 0 and 1 and higher numbers can
be represented as a positional organization of the base digitals – which in
binary system are called Bits – a short for binary digits. The classical
computing systems are all based on binary digits or representation of information/codification
of higher order information as the bits.
The quantum theory found the
reality at the sub-atomic level is not a switch codifiable as a binary digit.
The very act of finding or locating a particle changes it in a way that its
location can not be ascertained precisely. Further, the particle is more of a
probabilistic wave function, with a specific probability distribution that
gives very high probability of the particle to at its position but also a
probability, although very small to be anywhere else in the universe as well. Further,
particle can be in states that are not only 0 or 1 as in a classical switch but
can be in what is called superpositions of the two states. Superposition
doesn’t mean a simple OR of 0 or 1. It means a much peculiar way of playing the
dice. It can be in 0 or 1 or in what is called a superposition of 0 and 1. The
superposition associates with each bit now called Quantum bit of qubit two more
numbers that are normalized to 1 (strictly sum of their squares is 1). These
two numbers (let us say x% and y%) are the probabilities that the qubit is in 0
state or 1 state. The qubit can be represented as ([x%] 0 & [y%] 1). The
qubits can be manipulated and operated upon just like classical bits can be
with classical logical operators. The negation, for example, of this qubit will
be ([y%] 0 & [x%] 1) – a quantum negation.
In mid 1990s, Peter Shor, showed
that computation using the above representations and operations can find out
factors of a large number much faster than any other existing method to factor
a large number. This resulted in the first design of a quantum algorithm. In
2001, the Shor algorithm was used to factor the number 15. By 2012, the
algorithm was used to factor number 21. Just for the uninitiated, factors of
number 21 are 3 and 7. Factors are divisors of a number that themselves are
prime numbers. Some couple of years later an Indian-American computer scientist,
Luv Grover, used quantum computing theory to devise a quantum algorithm for
large database searches – it since called Grover algorithm. The value of such
algorithms, when they become available at large scale of qubits, is potentially
to achieve multiple order of performance enhancements and capabilities that
existing methods using classical computing can not achieve. This can lead to an
ability to break the existing crypto security of communication and improve the
search ability in dense and complex information networks.
Quantum computing uses key
quantum mechanics ideas of superposition, measurement and entanglement. The
classical computing has no such concepts. Entanglement is what Einstein called
“spooky action at a distance”. When two particles are entangled, one can know
the state of other particle if one knows the state of the first particle, even
when these particles are removed from each other to a large distance. This
characteristic is of great use for secure communication as one can know if the
message on its way from transmitter to the receiver has been tampered or
eavesdropped.
Google claimed a 72 Qubit
algorithm for random number generation. It is predicted that once we achieve a
300-qubit computing capability to process these possibilities we will have what
is called “quantum supremacy”, a capability or set of tasks that cannot be
performed by existing classical computing approaches.
Although quantum computing has
seen slow and painful progress due to complexity of representation and building
complexity of a radically different computer architecture based on particle
spin, or polarization of light, yet it is seeing deep and considerable
strategic investment by China, US, Russia and Europe. Its impact on economy and
national capability may be unclear as of now, however, one can be rest assured,
we will be seeing the first and critical uses in national security as and when
key players achieve specific technological or algorithmic capabilities in
Quantum computing.
Towards a “Quantum Cyberspace”
What should India do today
Warfare and war in the next 25
years of what we call the Sixth Wave of Innovation [v]will
be radically different as the technologies of the emerging paradigm will start
influencing and transforming us in multiple dimensions. Quantum Technologies based on quantum
computing will be on the key transformational catalyst. We propose that India
should
1. Take a mission mode approach
like what we took in creating the BARC and ISRO. The new missions should focus
on amalgamation of technologies – for the Sixth wave of technologies that
include algorithmic intelligence and quantum computing to synthesize biology,
energy and reality.
2. We need to create a pool of
next generation quantum work force that can not only understand the quantum
technologies but use them to enhance national security and evolve the economic
progress towards more robust application of technologies.
3. India should actively
participate in future technology groups and forums to build and collaborate
networks of common interest actors who could join hands in minimizing the
adverse impact these upcoming technological disruptions and maximize the value
to national security.
[i] https://www.iiss.org/publications/the-military-balance/the-military-balance-2019/quantum-computing-and-defence
[ii] https://gizmodo.com/how-the-2010s-changed-physics-forever-1839677834
[iii] https://www.amazon.com/Thirty-Physics-Quantum-PHYSICS-Paperback-dp-B00QPJQ5UY/dp/B00QPJQ5UY/ref=mt_hardcover?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=
[iv] https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/National-Strategic-Overview-for-Quantum-Information-Science.pdf
[v] http://www.indiandefencereview.com/news/responding-to-war-and-warfare-in-the-sixth-wave-of-innovation-2020-2045/
