Institute for Quantum Computing
Encyclopedia
The Institute for Quantum Computing, or IQC, located in Waterloo, Canada
, is an affiliate research institute of the University of Waterloo
with a multidisciplinary approach to the field of quantum information processing.
The IQC has outlined its motivation on its website.
program in Waterloo was a result of discussions among Mike Lazaridis
, founder and co-CEO of Research in Motion
(RIM); Michele Mosca
, a professor at the University of Waterloo and St. Jerome's University
; and Howard Burton, founding executive director of the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
.
In the fall of 1999, the University of Waterloo was exploring the possibility of expanding the quantum computing group started by Mosca to include the physicist
and quantum computing researcher Raymond Laflamme
, potentially with the help of the newly established Canada Research Chair program. The initial concept was to also establish the theory of quantum information as an area of research at the Perimeter Institute.
While the Perimeter Institute was in the process of recruiting Laflamme, it became clear that it would be advantageous to develop a large-scale program in computer science
and experimental physics
to complement their research programs in theoretical physics
. Discussions between Lazaridis and University of Waterloo President David Lloyd Johnston
led to the creation of the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) and the appointment of Laflamme as IQC's founding director.
IQC was established in October 2002 with the approval of the University of Waterloo Senate. It was founded with a complement of five researchers from the University of Waterloo faculties of science and mathematics. The University has committed to funding 30 faculty positions at IQC.
In 2005, IQC led the creation of QuantumWorks, an NSERC-funded national consortium of university, government and industry researchers committed to the development of practical applications of quantum information science and technology.
IQC is funded by contributions from the University of Waterloo, various government agencies at the provincial and federal levels and private donors, including $101 million from Lazaridis and his wife, Ophelia.
In its 2009 budget, the Canadian federal government allocated $50 million to IQC over five years through an Industry Canada
grant.
The permanent home of the IQC will be in the Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre, currently under construction in a central location on the university’s main campus. On June 9, 2008, Mike Lazaridis, together with Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty
, UW President David Johnston and other guests officially broke ground on the $160 million project. When completed, the centre will consist of three buildings: one to house IQC, one for the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology
, and a clean fabrication and metrology suite
to be shared between the two institutes. The budget for IQC's building is $80 million. It will house offices, laboratory space and areas for interaction among researchers. Construction on the QNC is scheduled for completion in 2011.
Faculty members have appointments in the departments of Physics & Astronomy, Combinatorics & Optimization, Applied Mathematics, Electrical & Computer Engineering, Chemistry, and the David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science
at the University of Waterloo. Currently, four IQC faculty members hold Canada Research Chairs
in various aspects of quantum information. IQC faculty and postdoctoral fellows also account for 11 of the 26 members of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
’s Quantum Information Processing Program. Four IQC faculty members also have associate membership at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
and another five are affiliate members.
Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener....
, is an affiliate research institute of the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
with a multidisciplinary approach to the field of quantum information processing.
IQC's Mission
The mission of the Institute for Quantum Computing is to develop and advance quantum information science and technology at the highest international level, through the collaboration of computer scientists, engineers, mathematicians and physical scientists.The IQC has outlined its motivation on its website.
Strategic Objectives
The IQC has stated three strategic objectives:- To establish Waterloo and Canada as the world centre of research in quantum technologies and their applications by bringing together the best researchers from mathematics, science and engineering.
- To attract the best students and postdoctoral researchers to engage in research activities that will significantly advance quantum information science, and to widely disseminate their results.
- To be an internationally respected source of knowledge, analysis and commentary on the state of quantum information processing.
History
The idea for founding a large-scale quantum informationQuantum information
In quantum mechanics, quantum information is physical information that is held in the "state" of a quantum system. The most popular unit of quantum information is the qubit, a two-level quantum system...
program in Waterloo was a result of discussions among Mike Lazaridis
Mike Lazaridis
Mihalis "Mike" Lazaridis , OC, O.Ont is a Greek Canadian businessman. He is the founder and co-CEO of Research In Motion , which created and manufactures the BlackBerry wireless handheld device. He is also a former chancellor of the University of Waterloo, and an Officer of the Order of Canada...
, founder and co-CEO of Research in Motion
Research In Motion
Research In Motion Limited or RIM is a Canadian multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada that designs, manufactures and markets wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market...
(RIM); Michele Mosca
Michele Mosca
Michele Mosca is co-founder and deputy director of the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo, researcher and founding member of the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, and professor of mathematics in the department of at the University of Waterloo...
, a professor at the University of Waterloo and St. Jerome's University
St. Jerome's University
Saint Jerome's University is a public Roman Catholic university in Waterloo, Ontario. It is federated with the University of Waterloo.St. Jerome's, within the University of Waterloo, combines academics and a residence. Students may both reside at and take classes through St...
; and Howard Burton, founding executive director of the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics is an independent, resident-based research institute devoted to foundational issues in theoretical physics located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Perimeter Institute was founded in 1999 by Mike Lazaridis...
.
In the fall of 1999, the University of Waterloo was exploring the possibility of expanding the quantum computing group started by Mosca to include the physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and quantum computing researcher Raymond Laflamme
Raymond Laflamme
Raymond Laflamme is a physicist and the co-founder and current director of the Institute for Quantum Computing. He is also an associate faculty member at Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. He was a doctoral student of Stephen Hawking at the University of Cambridge. He is responsible for...
, potentially with the help of the newly established Canada Research Chair program. The initial concept was to also establish the theory of quantum information as an area of research at the Perimeter Institute.
While the Perimeter Institute was in the process of recruiting Laflamme, it became clear that it would be advantageous to develop a large-scale program in computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
and experimental physics
Experimental physics
Within the field of physics, experimental physics is the category of disciplines and sub-disciplines concerned with the observation of physical phenomena in order to gather data about the universe...
to complement their research programs in theoretical physics
Theoretical physics
Theoretical physics is a branch of physics which employs mathematical models and abstractions of physics to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena...
. Discussions between Lazaridis and University of Waterloo President David Lloyd Johnston
David Lloyd Johnston
David Lloyd Johnston is a Canadian academic, author and statesman who is the current Governor General of Canada, the 28th since Canadian Confederation....
led to the creation of the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) and the appointment of Laflamme as IQC's founding director.
IQC was established in October 2002 with the approval of the University of Waterloo Senate. It was founded with a complement of five researchers from the University of Waterloo faculties of science and mathematics. The University has committed to funding 30 faculty positions at IQC.
In 2005, IQC led the creation of QuantumWorks, an NSERC-funded national consortium of university, government and industry researchers committed to the development of practical applications of quantum information science and technology.
IQC is funded by contributions from the University of Waterloo, various government agencies at the provincial and federal levels and private donors, including $101 million from Lazaridis and his wife, Ophelia.
In its 2009 budget, the Canadian federal government allocated $50 million to IQC over five years through an Industry Canada
Industry Canada
Industry Canada is the department of the Government of Canada with responsibility for regional economic development, investment, and innovation/research and development. The department employs 6104 FTEs across Canada....
grant.
Research
Research at IQC encompasses the physical sciences, mathematics and engineering from both theoretical and experimental perspectives. Research focus has two main directions: quantum computing, which concerns information processing; and quantum communication, which deals with the transmission of information.Algorithms and protocols
- Quantum walk algorithms
- Control of quantum systems
- Quantum error correctionQuantum error correctionQuantum error correction is used in quantum computing to protect quantum information from errors due to decoherence and other quantum noise. Quantum error correction is essential if one is to achieve fault-tolerant quantum computation that can deal not only with noise on stored quantum...
Laboratories and Groups
- Quantum Optics – Studying the quantum nature of light (Principal investigator: Kevin Resch)
- Integrated Quantum Optoelectronics (IQOL) – Characterization of superconducting and photonic quantum devices and circuits (Principal investigator: Hamed Majedi)
- Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) – Quantum information processing by controlling nuclear spins (Principal investigator: Raymond Laflamme)
- Quantum Spintronics – Controlling spin to encode qubits using quantum dots (Principal investigator: Jonathan Baugh)
- Quantum Photonics Laboratory – New sources of photonic entanglement and quantum key distribution (Principal investigator: Thomas Jennewein)
- Superconducting Quantum Devices (Principal investigator: Adrian Lupaşcu)
- Quantum Device Theory Group (collaboration with experimental labs) – Theoretical studies of physical devices governed by the laws of quantum physics (nanodevices) (Principal investigator: Frank Wilhelm)
Facilities
IQC is currently the principal occupant of the Research Advancement Centre, located in the University of Waterloo’s Research & Technology Park.The permanent home of the IQC will be in the Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre, currently under construction in a central location on the university’s main campus. On June 9, 2008, Mike Lazaridis, together with Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton James Patrick McGuinty, Jr., MPP is a Canadian lawyer, politician and, since October 23, 2003, the 24th and current Premier of the Canadian province of Ontario....
, UW President David Johnston and other guests officially broke ground on the $160 million project. When completed, the centre will consist of three buildings: one to house IQC, one for the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology
Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology
The Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology is located at the University of Waterloo and is co-located with the Institute for Quantum Computing in The Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre . WIN is headed by Dr...
, and a clean fabrication and metrology suite
Cleanroom
A cleanroom is an environment, typically used in manufacturing or scientific research, that has a low level of environmental pollutants such as dust, airborne microbes, aerosol particles and chemical vapors. More accurately, a cleanroom has a controlled level of contamination that is specified by...
to be shared between the two institutes. The budget for IQC's building is $80 million. It will house offices, laboratory space and areas for interaction among researchers. Construction on the QNC is scheduled for completion in 2011.
People
As of 2009, IQC’s research team consisted of 18 faculty members, 21 postdoctoral fellows and 63 students, both undergraduate research assistants and Master’s/doctoral candidates. The Institute has expressed intentions to expand to include 30 faculty members, 50 postdoctoral fellows and 125 students by 2014.Faculty members have appointments in the departments of Physics & Astronomy, Combinatorics & Optimization, Applied Mathematics, Electrical & Computer Engineering, Chemistry, and the David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science
David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science
The David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science is the School of Computer Science at the University of Waterloo. Part of the Faculty of Mathematics, the school comprises 77 faculty members, nearly 300 graduate students, approximately 2100 undergraduates, and 55 staff members.-History:In 1965,...
at the University of Waterloo. Currently, four IQC faculty members hold Canada Research Chairs
Canada Research Chairs
Canada Research Chairs are Canadian university research professorships created through the Canada Research Chairs Program.- Program goals :...
in various aspects of quantum information. IQC faculty and postdoctoral fellows also account for 11 of the 26 members of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research enables Canadian researchers to work on international research teams that are custom built to transform their fields of study...
’s Quantum Information Processing Program. Four IQC faculty members also have associate membership at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics is an independent, resident-based research institute devoted to foundational issues in theoretical physics located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Perimeter Institute was founded in 1999 by Mike Lazaridis...
and another five are affiliate members.
See also
- Quantum cryptographyQuantum cryptographyQuantum key distribution uses quantum mechanics to guarantee secure communication. It enables two parties to produce a shared random secret key known only to them, which can then be used to encrypt and decrypt messages...
- Anthony Leggett, winner of the 2003 Nobel Prize in Physics, is a part-time faculty member at IQC
- Paul CorkumPaul CorkumPaul Corkum is a Canadian physicist specializing in attosecond physics and laser science. He holds a joint University of Ottawa–NRC chair in Attoseconds Photonics.-Life:...
External links
- Institute for Quantum Computing
- University of Waterloo
- Quantiki
- QuantumWorks
- Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics(PI)
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR)
- Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)