Building the quantum computer hardware that will work reliably, and is large enough, to process quantum information without errors is a big challenge. Worldwide there is a huge experimental effort to do just that. There are many different designs being explored to build a universal quantum computer – some of these include superconducting circuits, ion traps, optics, and silicon.
In Australia, the Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology (CQC²T) is a world leader in two of the most promising types of hardware for a quantum computer: optical qubits (made of light) and silicon qubits (made of either nuclear or electron spins).