From Quantum Theory to Technology through Characterization and Control of Quantum Devices
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Applied Maths and Theoretical Physics
Abstract
Quantum technology has enormous potential to revolutionize many areas of science and technology from computing and communication, to chemical engineering and material science. For instance, quantum computers could perform certain tasks much faster than ordinary computers, quantum communication systems such a quantum internet could guarantee secure communication, and quantum control of chemical reactions might lead to the discovery of new drugs or materials, to mention only a few promising applications. As for any device, whether this be a car, computer or toaster, control is essential to ensure that the device functions as intended, and optimizing the device performance by optimizing our control of the device is usually a non-trivial problem. However, control of quantum devices is particularly challenging. One reason for this is quantum coherence, a special property of quantum systems that all quantum devices exploit. Unfortunately, quantum coherence is very fragile, easily destroyed through uncontrolled interactions of the system with its environment, and not easy to control in general. One of the main objectives of this project is to address this problem and find optimal ways to control quantum devices coherently. In addition to the fragile nature of quantum coherence, realizing this aim is complicated by the fact that no manufactured device will ever be perfect, and device imperfections such as small variations in size and shape of a particular element, can be very detrimental to our ability to control the system effectively. Hence, another important aspect of the project is to look at the sensitivity of various control strategies (and ways of encoding information in quantum systems) to device imperfections. It is hoped that understanding the effect of device imperfections will allow us to design more robust strategies, which is essential if we are to build quantum devices that work in the real world.Finally, the variations of manufactured devices mean that before we can actually hope to control the operation of the device, we must first identify experimentally what the effect of certain control influences on the system is. A simple example is a toaster with a control knob to adjust how long we wish the bread to be toasted. If it is a new toaster some experimentation with the position of the knob may be required to find the right position of the knob for perfect toast. For a simple calibration problem such as this, trial and error is usually sufficient to achieve satisfactory results after a few trials. For complex devices, and especially quantum devices, more efficient and systematic ways to experimentally characterize the device and its interaction with the control apparatus are required. This is essential before we can optimize the control to achieve robust operation of the device, and is another key objective of the project.
Organisations
- University of Cambridge (Collaboration, Lead Research Organisation)
- University College London (Collaboration)
- Technical University of Munich (Collaboration)
- National Health Service (Collaboration)
- University of Padova (Collaboration)
- RMIT University (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF STRATHCLYDE (Collaboration)
- National University of Defense Technology (Collaboration)
- Cardiff University (Collaboration)
- University of Southern California (Collaboration)
- National University of Singapore (Collaboration)
- SWANSEA UNIVERSITY (Collaboration)
- University of Massachusetts (Collaboration)
- University of Eastern Finland (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON (Collaboration)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Project Partner)
- Hitachi (United Kingdom) (Project Partner)
- University of Melbourne (Project Partner)
- University of Oxford (Project Partner)
Publications
Schirmer S
(2010)
Stabilizing open quantum systems by Markovian reservoir engineering
in Physical Review A
Schirmer S
(2009)
Two-qubit Hamiltonian tomography by Bayesian analysis of noisy data
in Physical Review A
Schirmer S
(2006)
Quantum choreography: making molecules dance to technology's tune?
in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
Schirmer S
(2011)
Efficient algorithms for optimal control of quantum dynamics: the Krotov method unencumbered
in New Journal of Physics
Solomon A
(2011)
Quantum control of two-qubit entanglement dissipation
in Journal of Russian Laser Research
Solomon A
(2007)
Dissipative effects in Multilevel Systems
in Journal of Physics: Conference Series
Sonia (Sophie) Schirmer (Author)
(2010)
Quantum engineering: From Einstein's spooky action at a distance to sustainable technology?
Ticozzi F
(2010)
Stabilizing Quantum States by Constructive Design of Open Quantum Dynamics
in IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control
Wang X
(2010)
Global control methods for Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger-state generation on a one-dimensional Ising chain
in Physical Review A
Description | The project has generated significant amounts of new knowledge in the area of characterization and control of quantum systems as reflected in numerous publications. The results highlight the practical challenges of creating functional devices for quantum information processing but have lead to promising new research projects on applications in medical imaging and spintronics. |
Exploitation Route | We are currently pursuing applications in electronics / spintronics and medical imaging and spectroscopy (e.g. MR pulse design) in collaboration with various parties. System identification tools developed could be used to create improved data-driven models for biological systems/tissue and its response to external fields (e.g. RF pulses). |
Sectors | Electronics Healthcare |
Description | NHS |
Geographic Reach | Local/Municipal/Regional |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Impact | Improvements in education and skill levels of workforce (training of MR physicists, training of technical staff), improvements in clinical service delivery (ongoing) |
Description | QUAINT (EU Coordination Action) |
Amount | € 399,000 (EUR) |
Funding ID | QUAINT |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 07/2012 |
End | 07/2015 |
Description | Royal Society Leverhulme Trust Senior Research Fellowship |
Amount | £41,941 (GBP) |
Organisation | The Royal Society |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2014 |
End | 08/2015 |
Description | Cardiff University, Wales |
Organisation | Cardiff University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in several joint publications and mutual research visits. |
Start Year | 2007 |
Description | Developing new diagnostic tools based on quantification of biomarkers using MRI |
Organisation | National Health Service |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Hospitals |
PI Contribution | Developing new diagnostic tools based on quantification of biomarkers using MRI, analysis of existing patient data to improve screening protocols, identify shortcomings in existing protocols, develop new protocols, identify topics for further research such as potential targets for biomarkers, improve QA and equipment calibration etc. |
Collaborator Contribution | Providing funding for studentships, access to equipment and anonymized patient data, clinical input and feedback |
Impact | 2 PhD studentships co-sponsored by ABMU, identified problems with existing screening protocols and developed improved protocols (e.g., local prostate cancer screening using advanced MRI techniques), publications in progress |
Start Year | 2014 |
Description | Hitachi Cambridge Laboratories, UK |
Organisation | Hitachi Cambridge Laboratory |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Collaboration with Hitachi Cambridge Laboratories |
Start Year | 2006 |
Description | National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, China |
Organisation | National University of Defense Technology |
Country | China |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration that has resulted in several publications, research visiting, and student and faculty exchanges. |
Start Year | 2008 |
Description | National University of Singapore, Singapore |
Organisation | National University of Singapore |
Country | Singapore |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in several visits to Singapore and some publications. |
Start Year | 2004 |
Description | RMIT, Melbourne, Australia |
Organisation | RMIT University |
Country | Australia |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in several publications and mutual research visits. |
Start Year | 2011 |
Description | Southampton University, England |
Organisation | University of Southampton |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in joint publications and mutual research visits and also an EU coordination action. |
Start Year | 2008 |
Description | Strathclyde University, Scotland |
Organisation | University of Strathclyde |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in several publications and many mutual research visits. |
Start Year | 2002 |
Description | Swansea University, Wales |
Organisation | Swansea University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in new ideas for joint academic projects and my taking up a senior academic position at Swansea university. |
Start Year | 2011 |
Description | TU Munich, Germany |
Organisation | Technical University of Munich |
Country | Germany |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic Collaboration that has resulted in several joint publications and research visits. |
Start Year | 2008 |
Description | University College London, England |
Organisation | University College London |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in joint publications and research visits. |
Start Year | 2007 |
Description | University of Kuopio, Finland |
Organisation | University of Eastern Finland |
Country | Finland |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in a visiting professorship at the University of Kuopio (now Eastern Finland) as Marie Curie Fellow in 2008. |
Start Year | 2007 |
Description | University of Melbourne, Australia |
Organisation | University of Massachusetts |
Department | University of Massachusetts Medical School |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration with Lloyd Hollenberg, Andrew Greentree, Jared Cole, Simon Devitt, Gajendran Kandasamy |
Start Year | 2006 |
Description | University of Padua, Italy |
Organisation | University of Padova |
Country | Italy |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in mutual research visits and joint publications. |
Start Year | 2007 |
Description | University of Southern California, USA |
Organisation | University of Southern California |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Academic collaboration that has resulted in several joint publications and mutual research visits. |
Start Year | 2008 |
Description | Aberystwyth University Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Maths/Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008 |
Description | Birmingham University |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics. The talk sparked stimulating discussions but there were no immediate notable impacts. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008 |
Description | Chinese National Academy of the Sciences Seminar (China) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar in Mathematical Control Division. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
Description | Imperial University Physics Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications and a new collaboration. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
Description | Institute for Quantum Computing Waterloo Seminar (Canada) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | http://iqc.uwaterloo.ca/news-events/calendar/generated/sophie-schirmer-2011-4-15 . The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
URL | http://iqc.uwaterloo.ca/news-events/calendar/generated/sophie-schirmer-2011-4-15 |
Description | Institute for Quantum Computing Waterloo Seminar 2 (Canada) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | http://iqc.uwaterloo.ca/news-events/calendar/generated/sophie-schirmer-2011-4-11. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
URL | http://iqc.uwaterloo.ca/news-events/calendar/generated/sophie-schirmer-2011-4-11 |
Description | LSS-Supelec Seminar (France) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Quantum System Identification: Hamiltonian tomography and decoherence estimation from time series data. http://www.l2s.supelec.fr/seminaires-automatique/seminar.html . The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
URL | http://www.l2s.supelec.fr/seminaires-automatique/seminar.htm |
Description | Leeds University Physics Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
Description | National Science Week |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Exhibits and hands-on activities for the general public. The main aim was to inspire curiosity about science and spark discussion and interest in further info, which it did. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | https://quantumcontrol.eu/tags/popular-science |
Description | National University of Defense Technology Seminar (China) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar talk in Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
Description | Quantum Engineering |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | A public outreach event as part of the National Science Week, co-sponsored by Welsh Goverment. Increased public interest in and awareness of quantum technologies, the role they play in our lives and their future potential. There was definitively engagement with the audience -- whether this translated into more students applying to study physics, I don't know. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008 |
Description | Strathclyde University Physics Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
Description | Sussex University Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics. There were interesting discussions but there were no immediate notable impacts. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008 |
Description | Tsinghua University Seminar (China) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics/Control.The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
Description | University College London, Physics Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
Description | University of Calgary Physics Seminar (Canada) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Quantum System Identification: Hamiltonian tomography and decoherence estimation from noisy time series data . The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and joint publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
Description | University of Helsinki Physics Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008 |
Description | University of Nottingham |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar talk in Stochastic Processes Group. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008 |
Description | University of Oregon, Physics Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar Talk in Theoretical Science/Physics. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
Description | University of Southern California Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Participants in your research and patient groups |
Results and Impact | Seminar talk in Physics/Engineering. The talk sparked interesting discussions that have resulted in new ideas and publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
Description | Urdd Eistedfodd (Wales) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | Hands on activities and demonstrations in science tent to allow public to explore science, including setting up a low field NMR/MRI machine that anyone could operate to learn about NMR spectroscopy, MRI and quantum control of spin dynamics and applications in a fun way. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Work-study Projects |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | Students from local schools complete 1-week projects of their choice learning about quantum physics and its practical applications, and exciting future prospects of nano-technology at the quantum edge. This is an ongoing activity. The feedback from the students was fantastic and the department has since scaled up the activity to allow more students to participate. Several of the students who participated have since enrolled in physics or related university programmes. Probably one of our most successful outreach activities. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |