IUCRC Planning Grant Carnegie Mellon: Center for Quantum Computing and Information Technologies (Q-CIT)

卡内基梅隆大学正在提议成立量子计算和信息技术中心（Q-CIT）。 拟议中心的使命是与行业和政府利益相关者合作，确定推进量子计算和信息技术的应用，以解决经典计算方法难以解决的具有挑战性的现实问题。计算对社会产生了深刻的变革性影响;量子计算和信息技术将产生更大的影响。 Q-CIT将与利益相关者合作，创建一个研究生态系统，在这个生态系统中，对量子计算感兴趣的公司、政府实验室和联邦资助的研发中心将与教师、研究人员和学生就实际用例问题进行合作，以推动该领域的发展。Q-CIT将与感兴趣的公司、政府实验室和其他实体召开规划会议，讨论关键领域的技术问题，这些问题的解决方法和算法可能适用于在没有容错量子计算机器的情况下在当前有噪声的中间尺度量子（NISQ）硬件上运行。此类问题可能包括通过汉密尔顿模拟计算材料属性，以及解决一般优化问题，例如在机器学习中经常进行的。 这类问题属于变分优化的范畴。从长远来看，Q-CIT希望与行业和政府成员合作并互动，以确定可以调查的特定领域的规范基准问题，以评估NISQ和未来容错量子计算机器的使用是否会带来量子优势。 随着目前量子计算和信息技术硬件方法的多样性，该中心的作用之一将是创建一个生态系统，以自由交换不同方法的信息，同时促进支持这些方法的不同技术团体之间的互动。 Q-CIT可能有一个独特的机会来开发与量子计算范式实施相关的创新教育和培训计划。该教育项目将成为培养多样化的未来量子劳动力的关键。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Carnegie Mellon University is proposing the formation of a Center for Quantum Computing and Information Technologies (Q-CIT). The mission of the proposed Center is to collaborate with industry and government stakeholders in identifying applications that advance quantum computing and information technologies in the solution of challenging real-world problems proven to be intractable by classical computing methods. Computing has had a profound and transformative impact on society; quantum computing and information technologies will have even greater impacts. Q-CIT will work with the stakeholders to create a research ecosystem where companies, government labs, and federally funded research and development centers with interests in quantum computing collaborate with faculty, research staff, and students on practical use-case problems to move the field. Q-CIT will convene planning meetings with interested companies, government labs, and other entities to discuss critical areas with technical problems whose solution methods and algorithms might be adapted to run on current, noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) hardware in the absence of fault-tolerant quantum computing machines. Such problems could include, among others, computation of materials properties via Hamiltonian simulation, and solution of general optimization problems as is often done, for example, in machine learning. These types of problems fall under the rubric of variational optimization. In the long run, Q-CIT expects to work and interact with industry and government members in identifying canonical benchmark problems in selected areas that could be investigated to assess whether use of NISQ and future fault-tolerant quantum computing machines brings quantum advantage(s) over classical computing hardware. With the current multiplicity of approaches to quantum computing and information technology hardware, one of the roles of the Center will be to create an ecosystem for free exchange of information on the different approaches, while fostering interactions among diverse technical groups championing the approaches. Q-CIT potentially has a unique opportunity to develop an innovative education and training program relevant for implementation of the quantum computing paradigm. The education program will be the key for the training of a diverse, future quantum workforce.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.