CCP-QC: Collaborative Computational Project - Quantum Computinge-
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Strathclyde
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
CCP-QC is a network linking computational scientists with quantum computing scientists and engineers, to develop some of the first useful applications of quantum computers.
Quantum computing is promising fundamentally faster computation as part of broader quantum technology development that includes more secure communications, and more sensitive measurements and imaging.
Our conventional computers, including those in mobile phones, modern cars, and powering the internet, are based on silicon semicoductor technology.
After half a century of growth, silicon semiconductor computer chips have been at the limit of what they can do for the past decade.
Faster computing requires more computers, which use more electricity and this growth is thus limited.
Quantum computing uses a different logic, enabling much faster computing for some types of problems.
The engineering challenges are formidable, and we are still at the stage equivalent to the first semiconductor chips in the early 1960s.
Early quantum computers are already available: developing applications to suit the capabilities of this hardware is the next step, to enable us to take advantage of the opportunities they offer to speed up our computations.
An important set of computational tasks in materials, chemistry, physics, biology, and engineering is developed by communities supported by collaborative computational projects (CCPs).
CCP-QC will network across these CCPs and the quantum computing community, to enable the CCP communities to enhance their computations by using quantum computers.
It will do this by organising joint meetings, holding training days to teach computational scientists about quantum computing, supporting small projects to develop proof-of-principle code and demonstrations on early quantum computing hardware, and providing an online information resource on early quantum computing applications.
CCP-QC will interface with the new National Quantum Computing Centre, to be launched in April 2020 and based on the STFC Harwell campus in Oxfordshire.
CCP-QC will enable quantum computing hardware providers to have their hardware tested with real problems of importance to the computational science communities.
The outcomes of such tests can thus influence the development of quantum computing hardware, leading to faster development of useful applications that are adapted to extract the best advantage from the early quantum hardware.
The simulations carried out by the CCP communities cover a wide range of important applications, from smart materials (e.g., better solar cells and batteries) to drug design (bio-molecular simulation).
CCP-QC will thus contribute to the development of faster computational methods in many important applications with wide-ranging scientific, social and economic benefits.
Quantum computing is promising fundamentally faster computation as part of broader quantum technology development that includes more secure communications, and more sensitive measurements and imaging.
Our conventional computers, including those in mobile phones, modern cars, and powering the internet, are based on silicon semicoductor technology.
After half a century of growth, silicon semiconductor computer chips have been at the limit of what they can do for the past decade.
Faster computing requires more computers, which use more electricity and this growth is thus limited.
Quantum computing uses a different logic, enabling much faster computing for some types of problems.
The engineering challenges are formidable, and we are still at the stage equivalent to the first semiconductor chips in the early 1960s.
Early quantum computers are already available: developing applications to suit the capabilities of this hardware is the next step, to enable us to take advantage of the opportunities they offer to speed up our computations.
An important set of computational tasks in materials, chemistry, physics, biology, and engineering is developed by communities supported by collaborative computational projects (CCPs).
CCP-QC will network across these CCPs and the quantum computing community, to enable the CCP communities to enhance their computations by using quantum computers.
It will do this by organising joint meetings, holding training days to teach computational scientists about quantum computing, supporting small projects to develop proof-of-principle code and demonstrations on early quantum computing hardware, and providing an online information resource on early quantum computing applications.
CCP-QC will interface with the new National Quantum Computing Centre, to be launched in April 2020 and based on the STFC Harwell campus in Oxfordshire.
CCP-QC will enable quantum computing hardware providers to have their hardware tested with real problems of importance to the computational science communities.
The outcomes of such tests can thus influence the development of quantum computing hardware, leading to faster development of useful applications that are adapted to extract the best advantage from the early quantum hardware.
The simulations carried out by the CCP communities cover a wide range of important applications, from smart materials (e.g., better solar cells and batteries) to drug design (bio-molecular simulation).
CCP-QC will thus contribute to the development of faster computational methods in many important applications with wide-ranging scientific, social and economic benefits.
Planned Impact
Accelerated deployment of quantum computing in the UK for useful applications will lead to a very wide range of impacts:
1. Improved simulations across a broad range of areas (materials, chemistry, physics, biology, engineering) leading to scientific, commercial, and social benefits in the UK.
2. Maintaining and enhancing UK competitiveness in quantum computing, leading to economic benefits from the associated commercial activities.
3. Training of people in quantum computing applications, early career and established academics, some will move to industry supporting UK economic growth in quantum technology.
4. The long term impact of a range of successful applications of quantum computing will affect the quality of everyday life by changing the way we live and manage our lives and environment, as it will offer faster and higher quality diagnostics. Examples include: how we communicate (holography); save energy (managing energy flows); improved weather, climate, ocean and geological (earthquakes and volcanic eruptions) predictions; personalised medicine and health diagnostics (e.g. fast analysis of DNA); and optimising transport networks (air, sea and roads).
5. UK security will be maintained and enhanced through staying competitive in the development of cutting-edge computing. There are many applications in defence and cyber security that rely on state-of-the-art computational capabilities. By accelerating the development of quantum computing capability in the UK, CCP-QC will contribute to this important broader requirement for UK security.
1. Improved simulations across a broad range of areas (materials, chemistry, physics, biology, engineering) leading to scientific, commercial, and social benefits in the UK.
2. Maintaining and enhancing UK competitiveness in quantum computing, leading to economic benefits from the associated commercial activities.
3. Training of people in quantum computing applications, early career and established academics, some will move to industry supporting UK economic growth in quantum technology.
4. The long term impact of a range of successful applications of quantum computing will affect the quality of everyday life by changing the way we live and manage our lives and environment, as it will offer faster and higher quality diagnostics. Examples include: how we communicate (holography); save energy (managing energy flows); improved weather, climate, ocean and geological (earthquakes and volcanic eruptions) predictions; personalised medicine and health diagnostics (e.g. fast analysis of DNA); and optimising transport networks (air, sea and roads).
5. UK security will be maintained and enhanced through staying competitive in the development of cutting-edge computing. There are many applications in defence and cyber security that rely on state-of-the-art computational capabilities. By accelerating the development of quantum computing capability in the UK, CCP-QC will contribute to this important broader requirement for UK security.
Publications
Imparato A
(2023)
A thermodynamic approach to optimization in complex quantum systems
Cattaneo M
(2021)
Collision Models Can Efficiently Simulate Any Multipartite Markovian Quantum Dynamics.
in Physical review letters
Wadhia V
(2024)
Cycle discrete-time quantum walks on a noisy quantum computer
in The European Physical Journal D
Wadhia V
(2023)
Cycle discrete-time quantum walks on a noisy quantum computer
Kolotouros I
(2022)
Evolving objective function for improved variational quantum optimization
in Physical Review Research
Abah O
(2022)
Harnessing nonadiabatic excitations promoted by a quantum critical point: Quantum battery and spin squeezing
in Physical Review Research
Callison A
(2022)
Hybrid quantum-classical algorithms in the noisy intermediate-scale quantum era and beyond
in Physical Review A
Au-Yeung R
(2023)
NP-hard but no longer hard to solve? Using quantum computing to tackle optimization problems
in Frontiers in Quantum Science and Technology
Piccione N
(2021)
Power maximization of two-stroke quantum thermal machines
in Physical Review A
Au-Yeung R
(2024)
Quantum algorithm for smoothed particle hydrodynamics
in Computer Physics Communications
Description | The networking activities have developed and strengthened connections between the academic computational science and engineering communities and the quantum computing communities. This is enabling the computational science and engineering users of high performance computing to plan for future use of quantum computing to accelerate their research. |
Exploitation Route | future integration of quantum computing into high performance computing will enable multiple sectors to take advantage of the academic research results, and in some cases, to apply quantum computing within industry |
Sectors | Aerospace Defence and Marine Chemicals Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) Energy Financial Services and Management Consultancy Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology Security and Diplomacy |
Description | it is still early in the grant, but the future impact of quantum computing is being considered more seriously in the high performance computing sector, influencing planning for future service provision and policy, funding for this, including at the government department level, where the potential impact on industry is recognised. |
First Year Of Impact | 2023 |
Sector | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Government, Democracy and Justice |
Impact Types | Policy & public services |
Description | International Network on Quantum Annealing (INQA) |
Amount | £321,864 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/W027003/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 02/2022 |
End | 02/2025 |
Description | Particles At eXascale on High Performance Computers (PAX-HPC) |
Amount | £3,041,191 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/W026775/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 12/2021 |
End | 11/2024 |
Description | Quantum Algorithms for Nonlinear Differential Equations - QuANDiE |
Amount | £265,019 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/Y004515/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2023 |
End | 03/2025 |
Description | Quantum Algorithms for Nonlinear Differential Equations - QuANDiE |
Amount | £233,683 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/Y004566/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2023 |
End | 03/2025 |
Description | Quantum Algorithms for Nonlinear Differential Equations - QuANDiE |
Amount | £29,520 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/Y004663/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2023 |
End | 03/2025 |
Description | Quantum Enhanced and Verified Exascale Computing - QEVEC |
Amount | £1,007,642 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/W00772X/2 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 07/2021 |
End | 08/2024 |
Description | Open Standards for Emerging Quantum Processors |
Organisation | National Physical Laboratory |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Connections through CCP-QC management team led to a team assembled for a successful bid for a tender from UKRI for the NQCC, led by NPL. |
Collaborator Contribution | See above, most of the team are part of the CCP-QC Network. |
Impact | Report on standards and benchmarking for quantum computing for NQCC will be delivered soon. |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | Open Standards for Emerging Quantum Processors |
Organisation | National Physical Laboratory |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Connections through CCP-QC management team led to a team assembled for a successful bid for a tender from UKRI for the NQCC, led by NPL. |
Collaborator Contribution | See above, most of the team are part of the CCP-QC Network. |
Impact | Report on standards and benchmarking for quantum computing for NQCC will be delivered soon. |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | dstl |
Organisation | Defence Science & Technology Laboratory (DSTL) |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | support and expertise for developing quantum computing applications |
Collaborator Contribution | serving on the management team to develop and co-ordinate events and training |
Impact | none so far - collaboration ended due to the death of the main collaborator |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | CCP biosim AGM talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Viv Kendon gave an invited talk at the CCP-biosim AGM meeting in Leeds |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://www.ccpbiosim.ac.uk/events/upcoming-events/eventdetail/95/-/9th-annual-ccpbiosim-conference-... |
Description | CCP-WSI |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | gave a talk on quantum computing and participated as a discussion panel member on future computing developments |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.ccp-wsi.ac.uk/events/training/code_developers_workshop_2 |
Description | CIUK 2022 posters |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Posters presented at CIUK 2022 in Manchester by several project members. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.scd.stfc.ac.uk/Pages/CIUK2022.aspx |
Description | CIUK 2023 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | posters presenting research to a wide audience of high performance computing users, including industry |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://www.scd.stfc.ac.uk/Pages/CIUK2023.aspx |
Description | CMD29 minicolloquium talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | talk on prospects for condensed matter simulation with quantum computing by Viv Kendon at the Condensed Matter Division minicolloquium on "Integrating QC in CMP Simulation" in Machester (UK) on 23rd August 2022. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://iop.eventsair.com/cmd29/integrating-quantum-computers-in-condensed-matter-physics-simulation... |
Description | CSA briefing |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | half our online presentation explaining quantum computing to incoming Chief Scientific Advisors and their teams |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | IPCC plenary talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | talk on integrating quantum computing with high performance computing at the International Conference on Parallel Processing (online) on 30th August 2022 by Viv Kendon |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://icpp22.gitlabpages.inria.fr/ |
Description | Invited talk PIERS Conference, Focus Session on "Casimir Effect and Radiative Heat Transfer" in Prague, Czech Republic |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited talk by Gabriele De Chiara to an audience outside quantum computing to publicise the research work. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://prague2023.piers.org/session.html?sid=S024 |
Description | NPL CM event |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | talk on quantum computing and applications to condensed matter simulations as an invited speaker at a workshop in person at NPL and live streamed to an international virtual audience |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://ccp-qc.ac.uk/qc_cm/ |
Description | PASC plenary |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | gave invited plenary talk to the ACM sponsored PASC conference (Platform for Advanced Scientific Computing; online, organised by the University of Geneva) on quantum computing and applications |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://pasc21.pasc-conference.org/ |
Description | SPHERIC plenary, Rhodes |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Viv Kendon gave an invited plenary talk at the SPHERIC annual workshop in Rhodes, Greece |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://www.spheric2023.com/ |
Description | Saar-Juelich focus semester colloquium |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Talk on integrating quantum computers with high performance computing by Viv Kendon on 17th October in Saarbruecken, as part of their focus semester on quantum technology. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Scientific Applications of QC: Materials, Chemistry and Biology |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | presentations from academic experts of state of the art and potential application areas for quantum computing generate discussion and development of application areas new connections were made with research teams not previously connected to the networking activities |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://web.cvent.com/event/d87cb285-da12-476c-83c0-9bbda9b765ba/summary |
Description | Seminar on Thermodynamics and Quantum Computing at the University of Barcelona (online), Barcelona, Spain |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Gabriele De Chiara gave a seminar to publicise the research work. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | Seminar on Thermodynamics and Quantum Computing at the Technology Innovation Institute, Abu Dhabi, UAE |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Gabriele De Chiara gave a seminar on the research work to an academic audience to publicise the work. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | Seminar on Thermodynamics and Quantum Computing at the University of Montpellier, France |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Gabriele De Chiara gave a seminar to an academic audience, to publicise the research work. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | St Andrews seminar (VK) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Seminar (online) to quantum physics research groups at St Andrew's University, by Viv Kendon on 30th September 2022 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Talk to IES (engineers Scotland) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Public engagement talk by Viv Kendon to the Institution of Engineers in Scotland (IES) on 14th March 2023, on quantum computing applications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://engineers.scot/events/2023-03-14-ies-hybrid-event-quantum-computing-how-to-build-a-really-co... |
Description | UCL CDT Summer School tutorial lecture |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Tutorial lecture by Viv Kendon on quantum computing in context, at the UCL CDT Summer School on 30-31st May 2022 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | poster presented at QIP2021 (online) conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | presented a poster at the online conference QIP 2021 to introduce CCP-QC to the quantum computing community. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.mcqst.de/qip2021/ |
Description | talk at the UK turbulence consortium annul meeting |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | introductory talk on quantum computing to the annual meeting of the UK Turbulence Consortium held at Imperial on 28th March 2022, by Viv Kendon |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |