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DOE announces funding for quantum information science and fundamental physics
Jan. 17, 2025.
2 mins. read.
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The DOE has announced funding for research in quantum information science and its intersections with the foundations of physics.
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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced $625 million in funding to boost U.S. capabilities in quantum information science and produce breakthroughs in quantum communications, computing, sensors, and materials.
This investment is crucial, notes a DOE press release, as quantum information science stands at the brink of a technological revolution, promising significant advancements in science and technology.
In particular, the DOE has announced $71 million in funding for 25 projects that will use quantum information science to explore the universe’s secrets.
The DOE wants to use quantum technologies to tackle big questions in physics. Scientists will work on theories about gravity and spacetime, which are about how matter and energy interact. They’ll also develop quantum sensors, devices that can detect very faint signals, to find new signs of dark matter or other unknown particles.
Quantum information science leverages quantum mechanics to manipulate and process information in ways classical physics cannot, opening new avenues for exploring the foundations of physics. Conversely, insights from fundamental physics, like quantum entanglement and superposition, directly inform the development of quantum technologies. This synergy is evident in areas like quantum computing. Quantum information science also provides tools like quantum sensors.
Quantum information science opens new paths for understanding the cosmos
Regina Rameika, who leads high energy physics at DOE, said quantum science opens new paths for understanding the cosmos. The projects aim to push forward the next wave of scientific discovery using quantum computers, simulators, and sensors.
The projects include using quantum devices to study spacetime and analyze data from particle colliders. They will also use quantum tech like superconducting qubits, which are basic units of quantum information, atomic sensors, and light in quantum states to make experiments more sensitive.
These efforts will help create new experimental setups where scientists can control quantum states or use entanglement, where particles instantly affect each other regardless of distance, to watch tiny physical events like radioactive decay or measure gravity between very small masses.
You can learn more about these projects on the DOE’s High Energy Physics website.
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4 Comments
4 thoughts on “DOE announces funding for quantum information science and fundamental physics”
In my opinion, some philosophical implications of modern physics should be taught to children already in preschool. It is crazy that (in my experience) more than 9/10 of adults have difficulties to believe some very basic concepts such as time dilation or superposition.
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I kind of disagree. Let children be children and let's teach them only the bare minimum they need to function in the world. Those who like learning about these things will find them and understand them. The others, they wouldn't understand them because they don't care.
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This is completely off topic to this news article but how would you make science a shiny topic for young people? Or make it even socially acceptable to be excited of it. There are always for example sports heroes and artists but if someone admires a scientist or talks seriously about, say, Harry Potter -concepts like philosopher stones, horcruxes or resurrection stones that person easily gets bullied or excluded from the group. Such a kid rather stays in the group and forgets those unacceptable thoughts.
In addition, physics goes as one of the most disliked subject throughout the school path because it is taught being purely boring mechanistic calculation without a glimpse of creativity or inspiration.
Of course there must be a lot of regional variations across the world but this is my experience and it seems getting worse still.
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I agree, but I think school should teach the essentials that kids need to function in the world and leave the social dynamics of kids alone. Any attempt to force niceness to nerdy kids will backfire. But those kids will find science and each other. I was one of them, and I survived well enough.
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