Quantum technologies are expected to become part of our everyday lives in the coming decades. Researchers in the emerging area of quantum information science (QIS) are rapidly developing many of these technologies, including ultraprecise quantum sensors that could propel fundamental science and medicine forward by leaps and bounds; powerful quantum computers to tackle insoluble problems in finance and logistics; and quantum communications to connect these machines as part of long-distance networks.
To guide the development of these devices, the Q-NEXT quantum research center has published a new report, “A Roadmap for Quantum Interconnects,” which outlines the research and scientific discoveries needed to develop the technologies for distributing quantum information on a 10- to 15-year timescale.
“Quantum information research has been mostly about the science until recently. Now, especially over the past decade, there’s been increased interest in turning the science into technology,” said Supratik Guha, professor at the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, senior advisor at Argonne National Lab, and Q-NEXT chief technology officer. “We’ve tried to be nonprescriptive, but we do say what needs to happen to build the technologies. We’ve tried to identify areas of science that need to be advanced and describe engineering challenges that need to be tackled.”
Q-NEXT is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Quantum Information Science Research Center led by DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory. Several Pritzker Molecular Engineering faculty members hold leadership positions within Q-NEXT.
In QIS, researchers manipulate the quantum features of nature for practical applications such as computing. The roadmap is intended to guide the QIS community as it navigates the challenges and opportunities afforded by advances in QIS.
The roadmap specifically focuses on quantum interconnects, devices that link and distribute quantum information between systems and across distances to enable quantum computing, communications and sensing.