Section: New Results

Quantum factoring

Integer factorization via Shor's algorithm is a benchmark problem for general quantum computers, but surprisingly little work has been done on optimizing the algorithm for use as a serious factoring tool once large quantum computers are built (rather than as a proof of concept). In the meantime, given the limited size of contemporary quantum computers and the practical difficulties involved in building them, any optimizations to quantum factoring algorithms can lead to significant practical improvements. In a new interdisciplinary project with physicists F. Grosshans and T. Lawson, F. Morain and B. Smith have derived a simple new quantum factoring algorithm for cryptographic integers; its expected runtime is lower than Shor's factoring algorithm, and it should also be easier to implement in practice.