Quantum computers are kept at temperatures colder than outer space to function correctly.

Quantum computers rely on qubits, which exist in a state of superposition where they represent both 0 and 1 simultaneously. These states are incredibly delicate and can be easily disrupted by any form of energy, including heat. To maintain stability, companies like IBM and Google use dilution refrigerators to cool their processors to approximately 15 millikelvins.For comparison, the cosmic microwave background radiation keeps the vacuum of deep space at about 2.7 Kelvin. This means a quantum processor is nearly 200 times colder than the void of the universe. At these ultra-low temperatures, atoms move so slowly that they do not interfere with the quantum state of the qubits.If the temperature rises even slightly, a phenomenon called decoherence occurs. This causes the qubits to lose their quantum properties and revert to classical bits, resulting in calculation errors. The cooling process involves a mixture of Helium-3 and Helium-4 isotopes to reach these record-breaking temperatures.Researchers at institutions like MIT and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) continue to refine these cooling methods. Maintaining this environment is one of the biggest engineering challenges in the field of quantum supremacy. Without this extreme thermal isolation, the complex algorithms required for advanced cryptography and material science would be impossible to execute.