Hyper-fast quantum computers have edged a step closer to reality after scientists generated 10 billion quantum bits in silicon for the first time.

The achievement in silicon, the basis of the computer chip, has important implications for integration with existing technology, according to a team of researchers.The scientists from Britain, Japan, Canada and Germany believe that such computers, based on quantum bits or qubits, will be able to test many possible solutions to a problem at once, the journal Nature reports.

Conventional computers based on binary 'switches', or bits, can only do one thing at a time, according to the Daily Mail.

"Creating 10 billion entangled pairs in silicon with high fidelity is an important step forward for us," said John Morton of Oxford University.

"We now need to deal with the challenge of coupling these pairs together to build a scalable quantum computer in silicon," said Morton, who led the study.

Quantum entanglement involves the notion that particles can be connected in such a way that changing the state of one instantly affects the other, even when they are miles apart.

Albert Einstein once famously described it as "spooky action at a distance". Other areas of quantum-related research include ultra-precise measurement and improved imaging.