Quantum computing and secure quantum communications
are potentially disruptive “industries of the future,” promising computers 100
million times faster than current technology and communications guaranteed to
be secure. To accelerate the development of these technologies, the National Science
Foundation (NSF) funded a cohort of “quantum foundries” with the aim of
developing the materials and workforce needed to drive this burgeoning industry.
The White
House Office of Science & Technology Policy has announced that a team
of South Dakota Mines researchers in the Department of
Nanoscience and Nanoengineering are joining the “MonArk Quantum Foundry.” The NSF-funded
center is focused on development of quantum materials and co-managed by the
University of Arkansas and Montana State University. The Mines researchers
bring expertise in nonlinear optics and nanophotonics, the science of light
matter interactions on extremely small length scales and ultrafast timescales.
“This exciting
collaboration is one example of many that highlight Mines’ leading role in
high-tech research and education in South Dakota,” says President Jim Rankin. The
cutting-edge work done in this collaboration will fill our ongoing need for
high-tech workers and continue to spin off new businesses right here in the
state.”
Robert Anderson, assistant professor of nanoscience and
nanoengineering at Mines, will lead the university’s effort. “We are excited to
apply the novel imaging methods developed at Mines to the nanomaterials
developed by the MonArk Quantum Foundry,” says Anderson. “Some of the most
promising quantum computing and communications technologies are based on controlling
the light-matter interaction with nanomaterials, so there’s a natural synergy
with our expertise and capabilities.”
Nonlinear Optics
Ultrafast lasers in the Nanophotonics Laboratory at
Mines produce short, intense bursts of light, with instantaneous powers in the megawatt
range (enough power to run 3,000 homes) but lasting only a millionth of a
billionth of a second (a femtosecond). So much energy focused to a small region
of space and for such a short period of time causes materials to exhibit a
nonlinear response; a startling example is when red light transforms to blue
light instantaneously, called “frequency doubling.” This and other nonlinear
effects in nanomaterials are the primary investigations to be explored during
the project.
One of the key steps in quantum computing and
quantum communications is generating and detecting single photons. Nanomaterials
and devices with properties optimized for this are needed. One fast and
efficient way of characterizing these materials is with ultrafast lasers and
microscopes, which can deliver short pulses of photons to a material or device
precisely where and when they are needed. Examining the nonlinear properties of
nanomaterials with ultrafast lasers is a well-established capability in the Nanophotonics
Lab at Mines, and this will be the main focus of the team’s effort.
Quantum Communications Industry
Supporting the MonArk-South Dakota collaboration is
Mines industry collaborator Qubitekk, a quantum
communications company based in San Diego County, Calif. The company markets
secure quantum encrypted communications networks, capable of transmitting information
guaranteed to be secure based on the principles of quantum cryptography. Joining
the MonArk Quantum Foundry will facilitate collaboration with Qubitekk by
examining relevant technologies and training students for future careers in
quantum computing and communications.
Quantum Workforce
Besides the research opportunities supported by this
project, which will engage graduate and undergraduate researchers, Mines nanoscience
and nanoengineering faculty provide courses training students in photonics, the
science of generating, measuring, and controlling “photons," the smallest unit
of light energy. “The optics and photonics industries are growing industries,”
says Anderson. “This new collaboration focusing on nanophotonics and
nanomaterials adds relevance and expanded opportunities in an emerging quantum
workforce.”