Example Concept: Surface codes are currently among the most promising QEC codes due to their high threshold for error rates and compatibility with two-dimensional qubit architectures. They use a lattice of physical qubits to encode a logical qubit, allowing for the detection and correction of errors through stabilizer measurements. Recent research has focused on optimizing these codes to minimize the number of physical qubits needed per logical qubit and to improve error thresholds, making them more feasible for near-term quantum devices.