Institute for Quantum Information

量子信息科学致力于了解如何利用量子物理的基本定律来显著改善信息的获取、传输和处理。量子信息科学的潜在科学和技术回报是巨大的，但在发挥这种潜力之前，必须解决许多深层次和根本性的问题。这些进展将需要受过各种学科训练的科学家的贡献，他们足够大胆地无视学科之间的传统界限，共同努力建立一个重要的新领域。考虑到这一需求，量子信息研究所(IQI)于2000年9月在加州理工大学成立，由NSF提供的为期5年的500万美元信息技术研究(ITR)奖提供支持。自2005年9月以来，IQI得到了由MPS/PHY的信息前沿物理计划(PIF)、CISE/CCF的新兴计算模型和技术集群(EMT)以及多学科活动办公室(OMA)联合赞助的为期三年的奖项的支持。IQI由五名加州理工大学教授组成的多学科团队领导，致力于在包括量子算法、量子密码学、量子信息理论、容错量子信息处理在内的广泛战线上建立量子信息科学的理论基础。iQI的研究成果具有明显的智力价值。自2000年9月以来，iQI参与者已经发表了282篇论文，涵盖了理论QIS的所有方面；其中86篇是自2005年9月我们的当前奖项开始以来产生的。过去两年中值得注意的成就是：(1)量子算法的进展，例如发现了寻找隐藏的非线性结构的指数加速比。(2)对量子通信的洞察，例如基于环境解耦的量子信道容量定理的证明。(3)量子纠缠的研究，如描述非局域关联的一夫一妻制。(4)用于容错量子计算的工具，例如针对高度偏置噪声的保护方案。(5)量子硬件的建议，例如基于超导电流镜的受保护量子比特。(6)量子信息论和量子多体理论之间的联系，例如探索量子霍尔准粒子非阿贝尔统计的实验的新建议。iQI的更广泛的影响也是多方面的。随着传统硅基信息技术的可扩展性即将结束，积极探索信息技术的新范式至关重要。爱奇艺的贡献正在扩大美国的技术基础，确保美国在未来量子科学和技术发展中的领先地位。IQI吸引并培养了顶尖博士后学者，其中16人已转到其他地方的教员职位(或同等职位)，从而显著加强了世界在QIS方面的努力。IQI还培养了许多仍在该领域工作的博士生，我们还资助了各种本科生研究项目。IQI？S更广泛影响的一个特别重要的方面是充满活力的访客计划。自2000年以来，我们资助了120名高级和博士后学者访问，以及70名其他机构的研究生访问。访客计划激发了智力上的兴奋，促进了科学思想的合作和交流，并为国际QIS社区提供了高度重视的服务。爱奇艺通过培养其独特的品质来最好地确保其持续成功：专注于跨学科研究，重视培养世界级博士后人才的职业发展，并致力于积极的访客计划。与此同时，为了应对新的科学机遇，iQI的使命将在未来几年内以重要方式演变。两个日益突出的主题将是QIS与凝聚态物理的令人兴奋的接口，以及弥合QIS的理论和实验实践以及量子计算的物理实现之间的巨大差距的艰巨挑战。需要在所有这些领域取得基本进展，才能使革命性的量子技术更接近实现。

Quantum information science (QIS) is devoted to understanding how the fundamental laws of quantum physics might be harnessed to dramatically improve the acquisition, transmission, and processing of information.The potential scientific and technological payoff from QIS is vast, but many deep and fundamental problems must be solved before that potential can be fulfilled. These advances will require contributions from scientists trained in a variety of subjects who are bold enough to disregard the traditional boundaries between disciplines and to pool their efforts in building an important new field.With this need in mind, the Institute for Quantum Information (IQI) was founded at Caltech in September 2000, supported by a five-year $5M Information Technology Research (ITR) award from NSF. Since September 2005, the IQI has been supported by a three-year award sponsored jointly by the Physics at the Information Frontier program (PIF) in MPS/PHY, the Emerging Models and Technologies for Computation Cluster (EMT) in CISE/CCF, and the Office of Multidisciplinary Activities (OMA). The IQI, led by a multidisciplinary team of five Caltech professors, is devoted to building the theoretical foundations of quantum information science across a broad front encompassing quantum algorithms, quantum cryptography, quantum information theory, fault-tolerant quantum information processiThe research accomplishments of the IQI have clear intellectual merit. Since September 2000, IQI participants have produced 282 publications covering all aspects of theoretical QIS; of these 86 were generated since the onset of our current award in September 2005.Some noteworthy achievements during the past two years are: (1) Progress in quantum algorithms, such as the discovery of an exponential speedup for finding hidden nonlinear structures. (2) Insights into quantum communication, such as a proof of the quantum channel capacity theorem based on decoupling of the environment. (3) Studies of quantum entanglement, such as a characterization of the monogamy of nonlocal correlations. (4) Tools for fault-tolerant quantum computation, such as a scheme for protecting against highly biased noise. (5) Proposals for quantum hardware, such as a protected qubit based on a superconducting current mirror. (6) Connections between quantum information theory and quantum many-body theory, such as new proposals for experiments that probe the non-abelian statistics of quantum Hall quasiparticles.The broader impact of the IQI also has many facets. With the end of scalability of conventional siliconbased information technology on the horizon, it is vitally important to explore aggressively new paradigms for information technology. IQI contributions are broadening the nation's technical base, ensuring US leadership in the future development of quantum science and technology. The IQI has attracted and trained top postdoctoral scholars, 16 of whom have moved on to faculty positions (or the equivalent) elsewhere, thus significantly strengthening the world effort in QIS. The IQI has also trained many Ph.D. students who are still working in the field, and we have sponsored a variety of undergraduate research projects.A particularly important aspect of the IQI?s broader impact is a vibrant visitor program.Since 2000, we have sponsored 120 visits by senior and postdoctoral scholars, and 70 visits by graduate students from other institutions. The visitor program fuels intellectual excitement,facilitates collaborations and exchanges of scientific ideas, and performs a highly valued service for the international QIS community.The IQI can best ensure its continued success by nurturing its distinctive qualities: a focus on interdisciplinary research, an emphasis on fostering the career development of world-class postdoctoral talent, and devotion to an active visitor program. At the same time, in response to new scientific opportunities, the mission of the IQI will evolve in important ways over the next several years. Two increasingly prominent themes will be the exciting interface of QIS with condensed matter physics, and the daunting challengeof closing the considerable gap between the theory and experimental practice of QIS and physical implementations of quantum computing. Basic advances in all of these areas are needed to bring revolutionary quantum technologies closer to realization.