AI has been used to rapidly assemble arrays of atoms that could one day power quantum computers. A team led by physicist Jian-Wei Pan at the University of Science and Technology of China demonstrated how an AI model can calculate the best way to arrange neutral atoms, a long-standing challenge in the field.

The researchers showed that their system could rearrange up to 2,024 rubidium atoms into precise grid patterns in just 60 milliseconds. By comparison, a previous attempt last year arranged 800 atoms without AI but required a full second.

To showcase the model's speed, the team even used it to create an animated image of Schrodinger's cat by guiding atoms into patterns with laser light.

Neutral atom arrays are one of the most promising approaches to building quantum computers, as the trapped atoms can maintain their fragile quantum states for relatively long periods.

The AI model was trained on different atom configurations and patterns of laser light, allowing it to quickly determine the most efficient hologram needed to reposition atoms into complex 2D and 3D shapes.

Experts in the field have welcomed the breakthrough. Mark Saffman, a physicist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, noted that producing holograms for larger arrays usually requires intensive calculations.

The ability of AI to handle this process so efficiently, he said, left many colleagues 'really impressed.'