Hybrid Quantum-Classical Computing - A Fusion of Classical And Quantum Computational Substrates

Abstract

Through harnessing quantum mechanical phenomena, quantum computing substrates yields the promise of transcending new frontiers in confronting the world’s most intractable computational challenges requiring exponential computational power that exceeds that of today’s most powerful super-computers. The choreography of such quantum mechanical phenomena has catalysed accelerated advances in the emergence of a quantum computational substrate paradigm that yields the potential to solve some of humanities most complex problems through quantum speedup: in environment, agriculture, health, energy, climate, materials science, precision medicine, autonomous vehicles in smart cities, renewable energy and problems humanity has not yet even imagined. However, the manifestation of a practical quantum advantage across several of these areas is unlikely through the exclusive application of a quantum computational substrate. Quantum computational substrates will not replace classical computational substrates, instead, both technologies will synergistically complement each other where quantum computational substrate accelerators functions as a specialised co-processor to a classical computational substrate in computing workloads best suited for the quantum computer, in a heterogenous computational substrate ecosystem comprising other accelerators. This paper reviewed novel new frontiers at the fusion of quantum-classical computational substrates, and findings reveal that practical applications and research remain limited. The opportunity exists, in considering a heterogenous computational substrate ecosystem comprising other accelerators, for practical quantum advantage across a broader set of complex problem domains to be realised sooner.