IonQ and Cambridge open quantum innovation centre at the Cavendish Laboratory

[SuperPosition78]

IonQ and the University of Cambridge have opened the IonQ Quantum Innovation Centre in the Ray Dolby Centre, the new home of the Cavendish Laboratory. The announcement comes from IonQ, and it is the company's first centre of this kind at a university. The partnership was first announced in March, and now it is up and running

A joint steering committee has picked nine first research projects. They cover quantum networking, sensing and hardware, as well as applications in chemistry, materials, finance, engineering and medicine. That is a broad spread, which suggests both sides want to explore where trapped ion technology can be most useful

Some of the experimental work is especially interesting. One project is developing tiny mirrors that collect light from trapped ions more efficiently, which could help link quantum processors together optically. Computational projects include portfolio construction, structural engineering models and mapping biological networks to find potential targets for cancer therapies

The hardware commitment is significant. IonQ will install a 256 qubit Superion quantum computer on the Cambridge campus. It will also build an entanglement distribution network with two Quantum Networking Data Centres and three networking nodes, and provide cloud access. Innovate UK will give the National Quantum Computing Centre access and compute time for three years

Cambridge's Cavendish Laboratory has an extraordinary scientific history, and having a commercial quantum computer on site gives researchers a powerful new tool. For IonQ, it is a strong presence in the UK research community. Niccolo de Masi, Mete Atatüre and Jordan Shapiro are all quoted in the release

Which of the nine projects sounds most promising to you? And how valuable is it for universities to host commercial quantum hardware on campus?

IonQ | IonQ Opens First Quantum Innovation Centre at Cambridgewww.ionq.com

[KrisStatlander_DDT]

Innovate UK giving the NQCC access for three years spreads the benefit beyond Cambridge. Other UK researchers will be able to use it

That is a good use of public money. Shared access stops the benefits staying in one city

[Gold Voyager]

Of the nine, the mirror project for collecting light from ions is the one I would watch. Efficient photon collection is the bottleneck for networking trapped ion processors. Solving it could unlock modular machines. Photon collection efficiency has held back ion networking for years

[FreeKickKing11]

Nine projects across so many fields might be spreading things thin. Then again, early exploration is exactly what a new centre should do

The best projects will grow and the rest will fade. Exploration is what universities do best

[CosmicRay67]

An entanglement distribution network with networking data centres is ambitious. Cambridge could become a testbed for quantum networking in the UK

That would complement the work at Bristol and Oxford. Cambridge already has strong photonics groups. Networking could become a speciality

[Arty Scout]

Mete Atatüre leads excellent quantum photonics research at Cambridge. His involvement suggests the networking side will be taken seriously. Good to see academic leaders shaping the agenda

His work on quantum dots and spin photon interfaces is well respected. That expertise fits networking perfectly

[Modric71]

Cavendish has produced so many breakthroughs over the years. Adding a quantum innovation centre to that history feels fitting. The Ray Dolby Centre is a superb new building too. Thomson, Rutherford and Crick all worked there. Quite a legacy to live up to