Why Five New National Quantum Information Science Centers Are a Huge Deal
+ DOE has established five new quantum information science centers at its national labs with funding of over $965 million, including $625 million in authorized funding from the DOE over five years, and over $340 million from the center participants.
Why is this announcement different? These five centers bring together U.S. national labs, academia and industry, in a bid to accelerate progress in fundamental quantum information science research.
+ To realize the full promise of quantum computing, we will need to build machines that can compute without errors. Quantum information is both powerful and delicate, built from qubits (short for quantum bits). Any external disturbances or “noise,” such as heat or vibrations, yank these qubits out of their quantum state and make them into just regular bits.
+ Through the partnerships and collaboration at the new centers, we’ll have the opportunity to make the quantum leaps our nation needs, at an accelerated speed. With a long-term vision of establishing a robust national quantum ecosystem, academia, national labs and industry partners now have a view of the quantum roadmap—where we need to get to, and how to get there, together. The centers should become testbeds for quantum technology across America.
+ As they develop and flourish, so will we, developing new applications and technologies, and opening new horizons in engineering and design, science and innovation, from foundational new science to the creation of new materials to the development of personalized medicines.
+ The opportunities that these new centers offer will have a rippling effect, boosting demand for quantum information science expertise at companies and institutions across America—and the world.
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