The CNOT gate, or Controlled-NOT gate, is a fundamental component in quantum computing. It operates on two qubits: a control qubit and a target qubit. When the control qubit is in the state |1⟩, the CNOT gate flips the state of the target qubit from |0⟩ to |1⟩ or from |1⟩ to |0⟩. If the control qubit is in the state |0⟩, the target qubit remains unchanged. CNOT gates are essential for creating entanglement, a key resource in quantum algorithms and quantum information processing. They are often used in conjunction with other gates, such as the Hadamard gate and Pauli gates, to perform complex quantum operations.