Quantum information and computation

Nature. 2000 Mar 16;404(6775):247-55. doi: 10.1038/35005001.

Abstract

In information processing, as in physics, our classical world view provides an incomplete approximation to an underlying quantum reality. Quantum effects like interference and entanglement play no direct role in conventional information processing, but they can--in principle now, but probably eventually in practice--be harnessed to break codes, create unbreakable codes, and speed up otherwise intractable computations.