Quantum information processing and quantum optics with superconducting circuits

了解并最终适应环境的愿望与人类文明本身的历史一样古老。20世纪初量子力学的发现揭开了这一努力的新前沿，这一努力的基础是利用支配原子和亚原子粒子行为的违反直觉的定律。这导致了现代一些最具革命性的技术，包括微电子、激光和磁共振成像(MRI)。在更基本的层面上，我们的理解已经发展到现在可以控制单个原子的量子性质的地步。这种“量子控制”实际上是在最基本的层面上控制和适应环境。尽管取得了这些显著的进步，但量子力学改变社会的潜力远未耗尽：我们目前正站在一场量子革命的边缘，这场革命有望像过去的突破一样深远。事实上，现在人们认识到，可以利用量子效应来创造出比现在的计算机强大得多的计算机。在某些情况下，这些量子计算机可能需要几天时间来解决问题，而这些问题需要当今最快的计算机数十亿年才能完成。尽管制造这样的计算机具有挑战性，但在过去的几年里，在使“人造”设备发挥量子力学作用方面取得了显著进展。这一新兴的工程量子系统领域利用超导电路和微波工程的微细制造技术的进步，实现了远远超过“天然”量子系统的量子控制水平。该研究计划的目标是推动我们对工程量子系统的基本理解，并找到新的方法来利用其独特的性质。因为这些超导装置利用的效应是我们理解量子理论的基础，所以这种探索将产生对量子世界的更深层次的理解，进而对我们所生活的世界产生更深的理解。除了量子计算机，它还将打开基于积极利用量子效应的非凡新技术的大门。*该研究计划专注于电路量子电动力学，这是一种基于微型超导电路的工程化量子系统。电路量子电动力学不仅是最有前途的量子计算机体系结构之一，它还架起了不同物理领域之间的桥梁。我们将在以下方面取得进展：i)微波频率的量子光学；ii)改进工程量子系统的测量；iii)利用电路量子电动力学进行量子信息处理。虽然这项计划本质上是理论上的，但它与该领域许多顶尖实验室的实验工作密切相关。我们的发现将有助于使新的量子技术取得成果，同时确保加拿大在新兴的量子革命中发挥主导作用。

The desire to understand and ultimately adapt one's environment is as old as the history of human civilization itself. The discovery of quantum mechanics in the early 20th century unveiled a new frontier for this endeavor, one based on exploiting the counterintuitive laws that govern the behavior of atoms and subatomic particles. This led to some of the most revolutionary technologies of the modern era, including microelectronics, lasers, and magnetic resonance imagining (MRI). On a more fundamental level, our understanding has progressed to the point where control of the quantum properties of individual atoms is now possible. This "quantum control" is quite literally control and adaptation of the environment at its most fundamental level.******Despite these remarkable advances, the potential for quantum mechanics to transform society is far from being exhausted: we currently stand on the verge of a quantum revolution that promises to be as profound as the breakthroughs of the past. Indeed, it is now recognized that quantum effects can be harnessed to create immensely more powerful computers than current ones. In some cases, these quantum computers could take days to solve problems that would require today's fastest computers billions of years to complete. While building such computers is challenging, the past few years have seen remarkable progress in making "man-made" devices act quantum mechanically. This emerging field of engineered quantum systems uses advances in micro-fabrication of superconducting electrical circuits and microwave engineering to achieve a level of quantum control that far exceeds what is possible with "natural" quantum systems.******The goal of this research program is to push further our fundamental understanding of engineered quantum systems and to find new ways to exploit their unique properties. Because these superconducting devices harness effects that are at the foundation of our understanding of the quantum theory, this exploration will yield a deeper understanding of the quantum world, and by extension the world we live in. Beyond quantum computers, it will also open the door to remarkable new technologies based on actively exploiting quantum effects.******This research program focuses on circuit quantum electrodynamics, an engineered quantum system based on microfabricated superconducting circuits. Circuit quantum electrodynamics is not only one of the most promising quantum computer architectures, it has also bridged the gap between different fields of physics. We will make advances in i) Quantum optics at microwave frequencies; ii) Improved measurement of engineered quantum systems; iii) Quantum information processing with circuit quantum electrodynamics. While theoretical in nature, this program is heavily connected to experimental efforts in many of the field's top laboratories. Our findings will help in bringing new quantum technology to fruition, while assuring Canada a leading role in the emerging quantum revolution.