The principles of quantum computing were laid out about 15 years ago by computer scientists applying the superposition principle of quantum mechanics to computer operation. Quantum computing has recently become a hot topic in physics, with the recognition that a two‐level system can be presented as a quantum bit, or “qubit,” and that an interaction between such systems could lead to the building of quantum gates obeying nonclassical logic. (See PHYSICS TODAY, October 1995, page 24 and March 1996, page 21.)