> This article is included as extended reading (Q-061) in the column *From Coins to Error Correction*. Column index: https://zhichai.net/topic/178636834
Gate speed and fidelity form a natural contradiction in quantum computing: run faster and the waveform distorts; seek precision and the pulse must stretch. A joint research team from Origin Quantum Computing Technology (Hefei) Co., Ltd. and the University of Science and Technology of China published their "Parameter Space Expanded Controlled-Phase gate (PSE-CZ)" scheme in *Physical Review Letters* on August 17, untangling this tradeoff.
Experimental validation was performed on China's independently developed superconducting quantum computer "Origin Wukong" (本源悟空). Without lengthening the pulse duration, the scheme introduces additional tunable parameters that simultaneously correct leakage and phase errors, achieving bidirectional optimization of speed and precision. Testing across 20 sets of two-qubit gates showed that, at gate durations of just 30-40 nanoseconds, the scheme significantly outperforms conventional approaches, with error control approaching the hardware decoherence limit.
Where the "Fast vs. Accurate" Tradeoff Gets Stuck
Quantum gates are the basic operational units of quantum computing, analogous to transistor switches in classical computing. Superconducting qubits are driven by microwave pulses to flip states, but the shorter the pulse, the harder it is to keep the waveform "clean" — leading to unwanted level leakage (the qubit jumping to a forbidden state) and phase errors (the rotation angle not landing correctly). The traditional fix is to lengthen the pulse and smooth the waveform, but this slows overall computation and in turn limits executable algorithm depth.
The Origin team's solution is "parameter space expansion": rather than lengthening the pulse, they add tunable parameters to the waveform design, making the pulse both short and accurate. It sounds like a minor tweak, but it is effectively a redesign of how the hardware "compromises with quantum mechanics."
Transferability Is the Real Story
The scheme's greatest value is not that superconducting qubits can run faster, but its transferability. The team explicitly states the technique applies not only to superconducting systems but can migrate to trapped-ion, solid-state spin, and other technology routes — with broad potential for patent conversion and industrial application.
In other words, this offers the entire quantum computing industry a standard playbook for gate-level optimization, not a hardware-specific trick. Compared with the same-day (August 17) Quanta Computer–Quantinuum partnership addressing the "quantum engineering manufacturing wall," Origin's PSE-CZ represents a Chinese path at the level of fundamental gate precision.
Origin Wukong's Real Industrial Ledger
As of publication, Origin Quantum's self-developed "Origin Wukong" series of superconducting quantum computers provides stable quantum computing services to 192 countries and regions worldwide, with over 52 million cumulative remote accesses and more than 1 million completed computing tasks. This is not a result stuck in a paper — it is an industrial-grade platform that real users have remotely accessed and run tasks on.
Notably, "Origin Wukong" currently carries 72 computing qubits. Achieving error control near the decoherence limit at 30-40 ns gate durations means that as the qubit count pushes toward 100+, quantum error-correcting code distance can remain compact, and usable computing power grows exponentially.
Additionally, Origin Quantum simultaneously released "Origin SimSun" (本源司南), a quantum computer operating system that is the world's first quantum OS with an open online download channel. It acts as a "Chinese steward," handling quantum resource scheduling, task coordination, and hardware-software adaptation.
What It Changes
The central axis of quantum computing competition is shifting from a "qubit count race" to a two-front contest of "gate precision + engineering capability." PSE-CZ's transferability gives China a genuinely industrializable bargaining chip in fundamental gate-precision patents.
Over the next 12 months, watch three validation points: first, whether Origin Wukong's next-generation 100+ qubit machine adopts PSE-CZ and publishes quantum volume data; second, whether QuantumCTek, Origin Quantum, and Turing Quantum follow with similar "parameter space expansion" gate schemes; third, whether the *Physical Review Letters* peer review triggers gate-scheme follow-ups by international peers (including IBM, Google, and Quantinuum).
Patent filings are already underway. This is another addition to China's reserve of core quantum patents at the fundamental layer — and the latest footnote to the "measure accurately + build well" thesis in the quantum arena.