Model Research Collection Book List
Today we are at the very early stages of quantum computing, the juncture where superconducting quantum devices (the early prototypes of quantum computers) take up a whole room and yet are barely capable of an infinitesimal fraction of the computational power of your smartphone. Globally, scientists are building unique machines in their laboratories to try to make sense of the complex and intriguing logic of the quantum world.
By bringing together physics, chemistry, engineering, and materials science, researchers have explored natural processes and utilized the principles of quantum physics to develop computational power. Very complex problems that are almost impossible to solve with ordinary computers could be solved exponentially faster by utilizing the full computational power of quantum computers.
Since the late 1990s, Yale has assembled a team of theoreticians and experimentalists who are leading development of an entirely new field of research: circuit quantum electrodynamics or cQED, which celebrates its twentieth anniversary in 2024. Now one of the largest academic quantum computing groups in the world, the Yale team has invented a new type of circuits called superconducting qubits (quantum bits) that behave like atoms, and in 2009 this team ran the world’s first demonstration of two-qubit algorithms with a superconducting quantum processor. These technological breakthroughs have enabled tech giants such as Google, IBM, and Intel to race to commercialize t¬he first functioning quantum computer capable of outperforming a classical computer.
Through selected titles from the Yale Library collections, Dr. Florian Carle of the Yale Quantum Institute (YQI) invites you to discover how humans have used quantum theory and, in particular, its implications for processing information in novel ways. Our selections also take some playful turns into the corners of computing technology predating quantum computers.
Title Books
The MS-DOS encyclopedia: versions 1.0 through 3.2
edited by Ray Duncan
Qiskit pocket guide: Quantum development with Qiskit
by James Weaver
Collecting and exhibiting computer-based technology
edited by Petrina Foti
Quantum Theory
Jump headfirst into quantum theory! This selection of books provides an easy first contact with quantum theory written by authors working in different fields (quantum science, the humanities, or science communication) to allow you to pick your preferred style or to match your background!
Helgoland
by Carlo Rovelli
Beyond weird: Why everything you thought you knew about quantum physics is different
by Philip Ball
Meeting the universe halfway
by Karen Barad
Speakable and unspeakable in quantum mechanics
by J. S. Bell
Quantum physics for babies
by Chris Ferrie
Featured title. Grab this book for your next story time with a baby and set the stage for them to become a future quantum scientist!
History of Quantum Computers
From the first endeavor into quantum physics in the early 1900s to the heated debates among scientists to other breakthroughs over the last 100 years that have allowed us to develop quantum computers, this selection of books gives an overview of the long series of steps that led us to a near future when quantum computers will be capable of outperforming a classical computer.
The quantum story: A history in 40 moments
by J. E. Baggott
A universal history of computing: From the abacus to the quantum computer
by Georges Ifrah
Neither physics nor chemistry: A history of quantum chemistry
by Kōstas Gavroglou
Quantum steampunk
by Nicole Yunger Halpern
Featured title. Grab your steam-powered goggles. The history of quantum science is narrated through a steampunk short story. Also, look who makes an appearance in the footnote on page 66!
The history of the computer
by Rachel Ingotofky
Classical Computers
No part of the development of quantum computing technology would have been possible without classical computers. Not that quantum computers are the result of a direct evolution from the classical computer, but our understanding of computer logic, advancement in computer science and electrical engineering, and the development of circuit boards played a crucial role in developing quantum technology.
Computers: An illustrated history
by Christian Wurster
The alchemy of us: How humans and matter transformed one another
by Ainissa Ramirez
The Apple II age: How the computer became personal
by Laine Nooney
Featured title. Presently, quantum computing is at the stage where devices take up a whole room, not unlike mainframe computers did in the late 1950s. While we envision the future of computing, let’s have a look at what classical computers once looked like and let our minds wander!
Prof Alan Turing decoded: A biography
by Dermot Turing
Image objects: An archaeology of computer graphics
by Jacob Gaboury
Quantum Computers in Pop Culture
Pop culture and science fiction have always provided fertile ground for imagining future technology: communicator and tricorder (smartphones) in Star Trek; foldable tablet computers (laptops) in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; newspad (iPad) in 2001: A Space Odyssey. . . . Let’s explore how authors have used their works of fiction to explore the quantum world.
Permutation city
by Greg Egan
Copenhagen
by Michael Frayn
Prayer for the living: Stories
by Ben Okri
Featured title. In the short story “Alternative Realities Are True,” quantum physics muddy the waters of this investigation by the British police. Part murder mystery, part quantum experiment! In the video below, watch and hear Ben Okri narrate this story at the Yale Quantum Institute.
QED: A play
by Peter Parnell
Hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy
by Douglas Adams
Applications of Quantum Computers
Quantum computers are not yet useful to the general public, as scientists are still trying to figure out how to make them work! But with the promise of such incredible computational power, let’s focus on what we can do today with quantum systems and what applications will be possible in the near future.
As more and more quantum simulators and quantum devices become accessible to the public for discovery and educational use, musicians and hackers are taking advantage of these new tools to create music! This book explores these efforts, including YQI Artist in Residence Spencer Topel, who created “Quantum Sound,” the first-ever music created and performed directly from measurements of superconducting qubits in 2019. (In particular, see chapter 18, “Superconducting Qubits as Musical Synthesizers for Live Performance,” by Spencer Topel et al.)
Quantum computer systems: Theory and methods
by Yongshan Ding
Principles of superconductive devices and circuits
by Theodore Van Duzer & Charles W. Turner
Quantum computer music: Foundations, methods and advanced concepts
edited by Eduardo Miranda
Featured title. As more and more quantum simulators and quantum devices become accessible to the public for discovery and educational use, musicians and hackers are taking advantage of these new tools to create music! This book explores these efforts, including YQI Artist in Residence Spencer Topel, who created “Quantum Sound,” the first-ever music created and performed directly from measurements of superconducting qubits in 2019. (In particular, see chapter 18, “Superconducting Qubits as Musical Synthesizers for Live Performance,” by Spencer Topel et al.)
Quantum sound
by Spencer Topel
Listen to Quantum Sound!
Dancing with qubits: How quantum computing works and how it can change the world
by Robert S. Sutor