Quantum Computation for Engineering

Much work investigates the development of different algorithms for the emerging technology of quantum computers. In addition, modern engineering demands an ever increasing amount of computational power. This is used in the fields of generative design, computational fluid dynamics, and digital twins to name a few. Quantum computers seem well positioned to meet this computational demand soon. However, there seems to be a lack of work bridging this gap and investigating how these quantum algorithms might be utilised for engineering applications. This utilisation may allow a significant speed up of computational problem solving for engineering, as well as allowing us to interrogate solution spaces previously too large.
This project aims to:
1. investigate the different quantum algorithms which show potential for enhancing or replacing classical engineering computation.
2. Explore how different engineering problems can be restructured to make the most
use of quantum computation.
3. Discover what scale of quantum computers might be necessary to perform the
desired computations.
These aims will be met by achieving the following objectives:
1. Develop a knowledge of the field of quantum information and quantum computation
by completing the relevant University of Bristol units.
2. Investigating the state of the research field through an extensive literature review.
This will aim to identify what types of algorithms exist and how have the replaced
their classical counterparts already.
3. Creating a series of criteria for potentially replaceable classical engineering
computations using the literature review.
4. Begin an exploration of different engineering computations, searching for areas
where quantum computation could be easily implemented and/or where the benefit
would be proportionally high.
5. Investigate how the engineering problem can be refactored to enable quantum
solving.
6. Development of a quantum circuit capable of solving either the problem as it stands,
or a simplified version for proof of concept.
7. Compare the performance of the quantum approach with the classical approach to
quantify the potential performance increase. This should consider the current state
of quantum computing hardware and make predictions about how future
improvements might impact the relative performance.
8. Evaluate the scale of quantum computing hardware required to achieve the desired
performance increase.
This project falls within the EPSRC Engineering Design research area. This work is being
conducted in collaboration with the Design and Manufacturing Futures Lab.