IBM Works with Four National Quantum Innovation Centers to Advance Quantum-Centric Supercomputing(QCSC) in the Future
IBM said that it will work closely with four National Quantum Information Science Research Centers (NQISRCs) to accelerate the United States’ leadership in quantum computing globally. This collaboration comes as the US Department of Energy (DoE) announced today that it will continue to fund the NQISRCs.
The 2018 National Quantum Initiative Act gave the DoE permission to spend up to $625 million to create five quantum information science centres to advance quantum computing research. Four of these federally supported NQISRCs currently include IBM as a member.
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The Vision: Quantum-Centric Supercomputing (QCSC)
IBM is bringing its vision for the future of computing—quantum-centric supercomputing (QCSC) —to life in partnership with the centers.
QCSC is a computing paradigm that achieves optimization beyond what any one piece of hardware could deliver on its own by utilizing various compute capabilities—specifically, CPUs, GPUs, and QPUs—in a tightly-coupled architecture. Building a scalable, fault-tolerant quantum computer is simply one step in creating a quantum-centric supercomputer; another is developing the software and infrastructure required to incorporate quantum into the larger QCSC computational fabric.
Unifying QCSC with the other essential pillars of quantum technology—quantum sensing and quantum communication—is essential to realising the full potential of a quantum technological revolution. A future quantum computing internet, in which several quantum processors work as a single system, may be possible with the integration of these pillars.
Two Important Exploration Thrusts
To achieve this goal, IBM is focussing on two main research areas with the four NQISRCs: investigating algorithm creation for scientific computing and other practical uses, and scaling towards a future quantum computing internet.
Getting ready for the internet of quantum computing
Engineering a unified architecture that smoothly connects the components of processing, communication, and sensing is required to meet this problem. Proving that quantum computing networks are extensible, even at the metre scale inside a datacenter, is an essential first step.
Working along with SQMS, IBM is investigating physically connected, decomposed, and cryogenically stored IBM quantum computers. IBM is now in talks to collaborate with Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory’s Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Centre (SQMS). Fermilab’s SQMS is regarded as a global pioneer in the production of high-quality, scalable microwave cavities and transmission lines.
In order to support this study, IBM is launching a Quantum Networking Unit (QNU), a crucial interface to its quantum computers that will allow for expandable microwave-based connection prototyping and research. Entanglement of two distinct IBM quantum computers housed in different cryogenic facilities is one of the objectives of the proposed investigation with SQMS. Within five years, a microwave-based quantum network would connect these units, serving as an integrated data center demonstration.
IBM plans to investigate research opportunities with SQMS in the following areas: quantum workforce development, quantum computing applications for fundamental physics, quantum interconnects, superconducting qubit noise sources, and large-scale cryogenics.
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Cooperation with Q-NEXT: IBM intends to collaborate with Q-NEXT in Argonne to further investigate the potential future connections between multiple, networked quantum computers. The goal of this partnership would be to create effective quantum networks by connecting optical cables to IBM QNUs. The development of an effective microwave-optic transducer, a nonlinear optical device that can transfer microwave photon frequency up to the optical domain at a single-photon level, is a major technological gap being filled here. Greater distances beyond those examined under the potential SQMS program would be possible thanks to the work being considered with Q-NEXT, which covers longer distances ranging from hundreds of meters to kilometers.
Investigating quantum computing applications and techniques
Algorithm discovery is entering a new age as quantum computers advance. This age necessitates thorough confirmation of when quantum computers can surpass classical techniques and permits empirical testing of heuristic algorithms on real-world situations. In order to tackle problems in new ways, future computation will make use of resources from both classical and quantum computers.
Partnership with QSC: IBM plans to introduce this emphasis on algorithms and applications to Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Quantum Science Centre (QSC). IBM and QSC seek to extend use cases that hold the promise of quantum advantage and find those that exhibit quantum usefulness, which surpasses the capabilities of brute-force classical approaches.
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To achieve this goal, the computing power of quantum computers must be increased by creating new quantum algorithms and putting sophisticated error mitigation and correction strategies into practice. Through the development of hierarchical quantum error correction decoder algorithms aimed at the next generation of fault-tolerant quantum computers, the teams are also striving to guarantee that quantum technology coexists harmoniously with high-performance computing as part of the overall QCSC architecture. In the end, this endeavour advances the goal of the QSC, which is to use quantum computing to investigate unusual materials.
Cooperation with C2QA: IBM also hopes to collaborate on particular applications in condensed matter and high-energy physics with Brookhaven National Lab’s Co-design Centre for Quantum Advantage (C2QA). The objective is to convert physical science problems into quantum circuits and test them experimentally on actual hardware.
As the US works to achieve quantum-centric supercomputing and keep its position as the world leader in the rapidly developing field of quantum computing, IBM commends the DoE for continuing to support these vital centers. In order to develop practical quantum computing at scale, IBM hopes that this ongoing financing will accelerate advancements and, more importantly, cultivate a cooperative quantum computing ecosystem in the US.
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