What Is Quantum Information?
The starting point for everything else on QuantumO: what makes information quantum, and why it matters.
Quantum Information
What is quantum information?
Quantum information is information represented and processed using quantum systems, with the qubit as its basic unit.
Quantum information science studies how the rules of quantum mechanics change what can be computed, communicated, measured, and protected.
It sits at the intersection of physics, computer science, and information theory, and underpins quantum computing, communication, cryptography, and sensing.
Recommended learning sequence
- What Is Quantum Information?The starting point for everything else on QuantumO: what makes information quantum, and why it matters.
Frequently asked questions
- What is quantum information?
- Information represented and processed using quantum systems. Its basic unit is the qubit, and its distinctive features are superposition, interference, and entanglement.
- Is quantum information a branch of physics or computer science?
- Both. It applies information-theoretic questions to physical quantum systems.
Lessons in this topic
Related subjects
Qubits
A qubit is a two-level quantum system used as the basic unit of quantum information.
Superposition
Superposition is a quantum state formed by combining other states, each carrying an amplitude.
Entanglement
Entanglement is a link between quantum systems in which the whole has a definite description while its parts do not.