SYDNEY, April 17 (Xinhua) -- Quantum physicists at the University of Sydney's Nano Institute and School of Physics are in a spin on Wednesday, after registering a new world record for reducing errors in semiconductor "spin qubits," a type of building block for quantum computers.

A joint project which also included engineers from the University of New South Wales, the breakthrough demonstrated error rates as low as 0.043 percent.

While there are many different types of qubits, including some which use trapped ions, photons or superconducting loops to process information, a spin qubit works by encoding data based on the quantized magnetic direction of a quantum object, such as an electron.

According to Professor Stephen Bartlett, a corresponding author of the paper from the University of Sydney, reducing errors in quantum computers is needed before they can be scaled up into useful machines.

"Once they operate at scale, quantum computers could deliver on their great promise to solve problems beyond the capacity of even the largest supercomputers," Bartlett said.

"This could help humanity solve problems in chemistry, drug design and industry," Bartlett said.

The achievement comes just one month after the New South Wales State Government announced it would back plans to establish a state-of-the-art facility called the Sydney Quantum Academy.

Quickly establishing itself as a global leader in quantum research and technology, the harbor city will soon be home to the largest concentration of quantum research groups in the world.