Researchers from two National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers at Princeton University and the University of California, Santa Barbara made a significant breakthrough in the worldwide pursuit of quantum computing. They engineered a method to control the spin of a single electron within a magnetic field without disturbing other nearby electrons.

The method developed by a team of researchers led by Jason Petta, assistant professor of physics at Princeton University with partial support from his NSF Faculty Early Career Development Award, traps one or two electrons in microscopic corrals created by applying voltages to minuscule electrodes giving them an ability to control spin orientation.