I finally made the move to start learning how to use the Qiskit library for running so-called “quantum” computing operations.
This subject has interested me since 2019, when I first got the book "Programming Quantum Computers: Essential Algorithms and Code Samples" from O′Reilly. The hype back then was massive. I even got the chance to work for a “post-quantum” encryption startup, implementing a new type of quantum-safe encryption algorithm.
But eventually, the Generative AI boom (LLMs and Diffusion models) caught up, and my focus shifted. Still, as a fun anecdote, I added the title “Quantum Shaman” to my social media handles—a sign of my persistent fascination with this weird and interesting field.
The Return of the Hype
In the last couple of months, I started seeing those apocalyptic titles on my news feed again: “Is the crypto-currency market about to be deleted by quantum computing??”
Seeing stocks like D-Wave, Rigetti, and Quantinuum climbing pushed me to ponder the quantum field once more. I decided to dive back in and relearn the basic concepts. But this round, I had more than just a book. I had the help of Gemini, ChatGPT, and Claude.
I went straight to the IBM Quantum Platform, registered to use their actual hardware, and asked my loyal LLM partners to help me write code that would run on a real quantum processor.
Firing Microwaves at Artificial Atoms
My first script was a simple 2-qubit system using Superposition and Entanglement to demonstrate validity—my first real steps in the quantum world.
I have to say, this was exciting! Running my script on a real machine meant I was actually firing microwave pulses at a Josephson Junction circuit. Somewhere in IBM's infrastructure, a super-modern dilution refrigerator was processing my commands.
But I soon learned there was a big difference between just running code and actually understanding it. I did some research into the hardware: from artificial atoms to firing lasers on Rubidium Vapor, to Superconductive Aluminum and Magnetic Flux.
What Actually IS a Quantum Computer?
I had many questions, but the one I couldn't grasp was: "If the underlying technologies are so different (lasers vs. microwaves), what is the actual definition of a quantum machine?"
To answer this, I went to read “The Physical Implementation of Quantum Computation” by David P. DiVincenzo. This paper is considered the "Constitution" of quantum hardware.
With an LLM guiding me through the density of the paper, I learned the DiVincenzo Criteria:
Scalable Qubits
Initialization (The ability to reset)
Long Coherence Times (The "battery life" of the state)
Universal Set of Gates
Measurement Capability
These ideas were nice to meditate on. As someone who read Schopenhauer as a young philosophy enthusiast—thinking of myself as a "part of the world" and the world as a manifestation of My "Will"—I tried to relate these new ideas about nature and probability via my own perception.
The Cryptography Reality Check
Though I can’t really tell if I felt more "quantum" after the philosophy session, I managed to spend some time "vibe coding" more scripts. My first real goal was obvious: Deciphering Hashed Encryption.
This was the moment I truly grasped the current limitations of the technology.
I created a simple 8-bit Naive XOR encryption function and asked Gemini to write a Qiskit script to crack it on IBM's machine. Reality struck hard. I learned how far away the actual capabilities of these machines are. I learned about Circuit Depth and Noise—and that cracking even 8 bits required resources we simply don't have yet.
I tried to manage it using Grover’s Search and VQE (treating the cipher as an optimization problem). My AI partner politely put me back in the real world and suggested I try a 3-bit hash XOR.
I ran the 3-bit version successfully, but this gave me a much more realistic understanding of those over-hyped news titles aiming to scare crypto enthusiasts. We are in the "Vacuum Tube" era of quantum; your Bitcoin is safe for now.
The Quantum Synthesizer
As a technical musician, I had one more thing I wanted to try before moving on to the next geeky subject.
"Let’s create a Quantum Synthesizer," I prompted without a blink.
The idea was to use Qubits as oscillators, modulators, and distortion modules—mapping Quantum Phase to audible parameters and using basic wavetable synthesis concepts to move our calculations back to audio formats.
We built a 3-Qubit FM Synth where:
- Q0 is the Oscillator.
- Q1 is the Modulator (creating timbre via entanglement).
- Q2 is the "Distortion" (triggered by a Toffoli gate).
I’m sharing the result script here—a POC Qiskit Quantum Synth. It uses the interference of quantum states to generate a waveform that is mathematically impossible to replicate with standard linear oscillators.
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