Consortium

To achieve its ambitious goals, NeQST has assembled a team of experts from eight partner institutions located in five European countries, uniting skills from experimental physics, theoretical physics, computer science, and technology transfer.

Our partners are University of Trento (project coordinator), Institut de Ciències Fotòniques (ICFO), Honda Research Institute Europe, Universität Innsbruck, Fraunhofer IOSB-AST, Technische Universität München, Center for Theoretical Physics (CFT), and Hub Innovazione Trentino.

University of Trento

University of Trento

Founded in 1962, UNITN is one of the most international universities in Italy and is consistently placed among the best Italian universities by national and international rankings. UNITN offers 70 undergraduate and master’s degree courses, many first and second level master’s degrees and lifelong education, a school of advanced studies, and 17 doctoral programmes.

Trento is home to facilities that develop some of the most advanced quantum devices and algorithms in Italy through Q@TN, Quantum Science and Technology in Trento, a joint laboratory of University of Trento, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, the National Research Council, and the National Institute of Nuclear Physics. Several of the NeQST researchers are members of the Pitaevskii BEC Center of UNITN and CNR-INO, which provides leading expertise on atomic physics and quantum phenomena. The research groups involved in NeQST specialize in the theory of quantum technologies, with applications in particular to quantum simulation of lattice gauge theories and nuclear physics, as well as quantum optimization.

For more information visit: Hauke Group — Quantum Technologies Theory and Trento Digital University | Alessandro Roggero

Institut de Ciències Fotòniques (ICFO)

Institut de Ciències Fotòniques (ICFO)

ICFO is a CERCA research centre member of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, founded in 2002 by the Government of Catalonia and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya · Barcelona Tech, both of which are members of ICFO’s board of trustees along with the Cellex and Mir-Puig Foundations, philanthropic entities that have played a critical role in the advancement of the institute. Located in the Mediterranean Technology Park in the metropolitan area of Barcelona, the institute currently hosts 450 people, organized in 25 research teams that use 80 state-of-the-art research laboratories. Research lines encompass diverse areas in which photonics plays a decisive role, with an emphasis on basic and applied themes relevant to medicine and biology, advanced imaging techniques, information technologies, a range of environmental sensors, tunable and ultra-fast lasers, quantum science and technologies, photovoltaics and the properties and applications of nano and quantum materials such as graphene, among others. In addition to three consecutive accreditations of the Severo Ochoa national program for top research excellence, ICFOnians have been awarded 16 elite ICREA Professorships as well as 41 European Research Council grants. ICFO is very proactive in fostering entrepreneurial activities, spin-off creation, and creating collaborations and links between industry and ICFO researchers. To date, ICFO has helped create 11 start-up companies.

The research groups involved in NeQST will focus in particular on quantum simulation of lattice gauge theories and certification techniques.

Honda Research Institute Europe

Honda Research Institute Europe

The Honda Research Institute Europe conducts research in artificial intelligence and intelligent systems. We believe that innovation is created through science and that intelligent systems will shape our future in many ways, ranging from autonomous and accident-free driving to personal robots, and from smart design and manufacturing to the efficient use of resources. Our focus is on fundamental research in domains such as computer science, bioinformatics, computational intelligence, optimization, quantum computing, cooperative intelligence, and robotics. With about 50 scientists and researchers our goal is to develop novel technologies and provide innovative solutions to support Honda’s current and future technology roadmap. We provide new ideas, concepts, and insights through early research projects with experts of different backgrounds from both the private sector and academia. We strive to be an active member of the scientific community and collaborate closely with our network of partner universities. Working together in international teams of scientists, developers, students, and business experts, creates unique opportunities to shape future technology. Application domains of our research topics range from robotics, Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), and energy management to privacy by design, software systems, human-machine interfaces, and optimization.

The researchers involved in NeQST will focus in particular on multi-objective and constrained real-world optimization.

Universität Innsbruck

Universität Innsbruck

Founded in 1669, the University of Innsbruck (UIBK) is western Austria’s largest institution of higher education and research, and covers a broad range of teaching and research areas. It is organised in 16 faculties, 83 departments and 37 research platforms and centres.

UIBK has been a pioneer in quantum information science and quantum technology, both on the theory side, as well as on the experimental side, particularly the field of quantum computing with trapped ions. Today, experimental research at UIBK covers most major platforms for quantum information science, including trapped ions, cold atoms, photons, and superconducting circuits. The research group involved in NeQST specializes in quantum information processing with trapped ions, including quantum error correction, quantum simulation, and verification and validation of quantum devices.

For more information, visit: quantumoptics.at

Fraunhofer IOSB-AST

Fraunhofer IOSB-AST

Fraunhofer IOSB-AST has a strong track record in applied research of complex cybernetic systems and transforming new methods and processes into innovative operation control applications such as cross-sectoral energy systems and water supply. The researchers at the IOSB-AST develop tailored, resilient and future-oriented systems engineering solutions for complex, dynamic and time-varying processes in the fields of energy and water supply, cybersecurity, land and underwater robotics, data spaces and ICT ecosystems, and disinfection. Through their scientific work, IOSB-AST scientists provide significant upstream research for the benefit of customers and society.

The department Cognitive Energy Systems develops and researches pioneering key technologies in the field of energy systems engineering in the areas of energy technology, energy informatics, energy logistics, cyber security, cross-sectoral energy systems and cognitive assistance systems in Germany, Europe, and worldwide. With our many years of know-how, we make essential contributions to the successful transformation of energy supply systems with our technological solutions for the benefit of our partners. Since 2020, the group cross-sectoral energy systems investigates the benefits of quantum computing and quantum communication within the energy sector especially for optimized management for electric vehicle charging.

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Technische Universität München

Technische Universität München

With over 600 professors and ca 45,000 students, the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has a unique profile in Germany with its core domains in natural science, engineering, life science, and medicine. With an annual budget of over €1.7 billion in 2020, including almost €400 million of competitive third-party funds, TUM is focused on strengthening the excellence of its core competences in research, teaching, and learning, whilst also promoting groundbreaking and interdisciplinary research. TUM is regularly among the high performers in international rankings and, e.g., ranks 30th in THE’s worldwide comparison – putting it in the lead in the EU. The QS World University Ranking rates TUM number 49 worldwide (3rd in the EU) and the Shanghai Ranking ranks TUM in 56th place (number 7 in the EU).

The Chair for Design Automation at TUM focusses on the development of methods and data-structures for the automatic design of conventional as well as emerging technologies. They develop methods and software tools dedicated to the design and realization of quantum algorithms/circuits. We see ourselves as an “interface” between the stakeholders building corresponding quantum computers and the ones using them.

For more information visit: www.cda.cit.tum.de/research/quantum

Center for Theoretical Physics (CFT)

Center for Theoretical Physics (CFT)

The Center for Theoretical Physics (CFT) of the Polish Academy of Sciences was launched in 1980 with the mission to become the leading institute in theoretical physics in Poland and to make Polish science visible at the international level. Currently, it hosts around 55 researchers at different levels; in particular, 18 investigators hold permanent posts. Most of the senior staff members are widely-recognized in their fields. Research at CFT encompasses such broad thematic areas of modern theoretical physics, ranging from cosmology and astrophysics to classical and quantum electrodynamics or quantum optics. The institute is organized into nine research groups, four of which do pioneering research in many branches of theoretical quantum physics, including quantum information theory or quantum computing. In particular, the Quantum Information group involved in the NeQST project specializes in the characterization and detection of various forms of quantum correlations and their use in designing certification methods for quantum devices.

Hub Innovazione Trentino

Hub Innovazione Trentino

Fondazione Hub Innovazione Trentino (HIT) is an instrumental body of the Autonomous Province of Trento and a research and knowledge dissemination organization. HIT promotes and enhances the scientific-technological research activities and results of its founders—University of Trento, Fondazione Edmund Mach, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, and Trentino Sviluppo—through technology transfer activities.

Within NeQST, HIT will analyze possibilities for technology transfer and help partners with intellectual property management and exploitation of results.