ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Quantum gate

Alright kiddo, so you know how we use computers to do stuff like play games, watch videos, and look up information? Well, there are different types of computers, and one type is called a quantum computer.

A quantum computer uses something called quantum bits, or qubits for short, instead of the regular bits that a normal computer uses. These qubits have a special property where they can be in more than one state at the same time - kind of like Schrodinger's cat being both alive and dead.

Now, a quantum gate is like a tool that we use to manipulate these qubits. It's kind of like a game where you have a bunch of switches that you can flip on or off, and every time you do that, the output changes. But with quantum gates, the output can change in more than one way at the same time.

For example, let's say you have two qubits, and you put them through a quantum gate that "entangles" them - this means that the two qubits become "linked" together in a weird way. If you measure one qubit and it comes up as a "0", then the other qubit will also be a "0". But if you measure the first qubit and it comes up as a "1", then the second qubit will be a "1" as well. It's like they're both always the same, no matter what you do to them.

So, in short, a quantum gate is a way to manipulate qubits in a quantum computer. They're like tools that we use to make the computer do what we want it to do.