Selected features of quantum information and computation theory

Quantum information and computation theory has become a fast-growing, if not all-too-hot field of research, linking quantum optics, foundations of quantum physics with recursive function theory, computational complexity theory and algorithmic information theory. It utilizes the "bizarre, mindboggling" features encountered in the quantum domain. One of the attempts is directed towards a speedup of computation due to quantum parallelism. Another application is quantum cryptography, making use of complementarity. The following features are important, but not sufficient qualities of quantum computers. In order to appreciate quantum computation, one should make proper use of the above features--quantum parallelism, unerasability of information, non-copying, context-dependence and impossibility to directly measure the atoms of quantum information, the qbits, related to quantum indeterminism.

Here are some important reference points in the internet:

Smolin's collection of manuscripts
Shor's paper
Svozil's review paper