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IBM is doubling down on quantum computing partnerships, this week flagging up four major projects. It’s working with four separate US government quantum computing research institutes, most notably the US Department of Energy (DoE).
The DoE revealed that it’s earmarking $625 million to support research at the country’s National Quantum Information Science Research Centers.
IBM wants to build a “quantum computing internet”, as well as developing the algorithms that will underpin quantum-based apps. It’s currently “in discussions” with the Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Centre (SQMS) at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory to run a study that will “entangle two IBM quantum computers in separate cryogenic infrastructure, linked together by a microwave-based quantum network as an interconnected data center demonstrator within five years”.
IBM hopes the work will create an architecture that can link up quantum computing, communication and sensing.
Other research collaborations could look at “large-scale cryogenics, superconducting qubit noise sources, quantum interconnects, quantum computing applications for fundamental physics, and quantum workforce development”, Big Blue noted.
Meanwhile, research conducted with the Q-NEXT centre at Argonne will build on the work at SQMS, studying how best to link multiple quantum computers and quantum networking technologies, IBM said.
It will also develop algorithms at the Quantum Science Centre at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, IBM added. The centre will look at developing advanced error mitigation and correction techniques, as well as research to help enable traditional and quantum systems to work side by side.
The lab hopes to use quantum computing for research into “exotic materials”, according to IBM.
Want more? The Brookhaven National Lab’s Co-design Centre for Quantum Advantage will work with IBM to build quantum computing for applications in research into high-energy physics and condensed matter, so experiments can be run in silico using quantum systems.
According to the DoE, the $625 million will be used to support five National Quantum Information Science Research Centres, including those working with IBM, as well as the Quantum Systems Accelerator at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
The institutes will concentrate on research and development around quantum and related technologies, particularly those tackling both the DoE’s most pressing problems as well as national security issues. The centres will also work to support the expansion of the overall quantum ecosystem, with “community resources, workforce opportunities, and industry partnerships”.
Last month, IBM announced that the second IBM Quantum System 2 outside of the US, installed as part of a research effort with the Basque government, had gone live. The first system launched in Japan in June.
According to the earnings call for the company’s third quarter financial results, IBM’s quantum ecosystem now covers 280 partners, and the company plans to debut the first large scale, error-corrected quantum computer by 2028. The company is hoping to “unlock the full power of quantum-centric supercomputing by 2033”, its quantum development and innovation roadmap shows.
