My First Qubit: Circle Notation Busy Board
The Quantum Turtle · Quantum Play Lab
My First Qubit
Two glowing circles, two knobs, and real quantum rules. Turn a knob to make any pure qubit state.
Choose how much 0 and 1
Turn the second clock hand
Start at |0⟩. Turn either knob!
How the two knobs work
Balance changes the relative probability of the two outcomes, from all 0 to all 1. Phase rotates the clock hand for the |1⟩ amplitude, showing its phase relative to the |0⟩ amplitude. The |0⟩ hand is the fixed reference. At the poles, the relative phase is physically irrelevant.
Filled area, not radius, represents the probability. Together the two controls can express every pure single-qubit state, but not arbitrary mixed states.
Try H → Z → H → MEASURE from |0⟩: the answer is always 1. Or turn BALANCE to 90° and see that the outcomes have equal probability.
Interactive concept for a potential physical busy board. In a real toy, the sliders would become robust rotary encoders and the circles could be displays behind protected windows. This is a classical simulator, not quantum hardware.