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Every time a computer stores or erases information, it uses energy. For decades, scientists wondered how little energy a memory device could use before reaching the fundamental theoretical limit set by physics. Researchers have now shown that it is possible to come close to this limit. Published in *Nature Communications*, the study demonstrates a superconducting memory bit that operates using only about five times Landauer’s limit. Landauer’s limit represents the minimum amount of energy needed to erase one bit of information according to physical laws.

Instead of conventional electronic components, the researchers stored information in a superconducting vortex, which is a tiny magnetic whirlpool forming inside materials cooled to extremely low temperatures. The team trapped a single vortex between two stable positions, where each position represented a zero or one. Dr. Yonathan Anahory, who led the study with Nofar Fridman from Hebrew University, stated that their work measures the energy required for this operation and found it can run at approximately five times Landauer’s limit. This is remarkably close to the minimum permitted by physics, whereas a modern computer typically requires more than a million times more energy for the same task.

Measuring such tiny energy was difficult because the vortex is exceptionally small and delicate. Rather than detecting temperature increases from heat released by the moving vortex, researchers tracked its magnetic response using an ultrasensitive SQUID-on-tip microscope. Nofar Fridman explained that following this magnetic response allowed them to compare the device’s energy cost with fundamental limits of information processing. The team emphasizes the device is still experimental and operates only at around 4 Kelvin (minus 269 degrees Celsius), making it unsuitable for everyday computers but potentially useful for quantum systems that already operate at similar cryogenic temperatures.