Two of the most fascinating and mysterious principles in quantum mechanics are s uperposition and entanglement. Superposition refers to a subatomic particle in an undefined state; not spinning up or spinning down, for instance, but both at the same time. And entanglement is when two subatomic particles are so closely connected that if one undergoes a change--even if light years apart from its entangled partner--the other simultaneously changes.

Quantum mechanics were first discovered and described by German physicists Max Planck and Albert Einstein. While their theories still have some unanswered questions, they have already found practical applications in quantum computing.

Whereas classical computers transmit information through binary bits of 0's and 1's, quantum computers use quantum bits, or "qubits," which can be either 0, 1 or a superposition of the two at once. Moreover, encoded information can also be entangled. These functions render quantum computers faster and more powerful than classical computers.

A new wave of Germans is establishing a legacy in quantum computing. In this newsletter we check out German companies focusing on quantum simulations, cybersecurity and hardware. We talk to reps from a German university research group and a German-Canadian collaboration. In an interview with Dr. Guido Burkhard, we discuss his findings making quantum computing more stable and efficient.