Quantum Information Science (QIS) Research in Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences (CSGB)
This activity supports fundamental research at the intersection of chemistry, quantum physics, and information theories to provide a foundational understanding of quantum information control in complex molecular systems. Efforts in this area build the necessary scientific basis to develop chemical design principles for the next-generation quantum technologies in computing, communication, and sensing.
The core QIS research activity aligns with the priority research opportunities described in two community Roundtable reports organized by BES (Opportunities for Basic Research for Next-Generation Quantum Systems and Opportunities for Quantum Computing in Chemical and Materials Sciences). Applicants may also find useful discussions in the recent National Academy of Sciences report, Advancing Chemistry and Quantum Information Science.
Among applicable topics of research are fundamental studies of:
- Entanglement as an important metric of quantum information content, including its quantification, control, and utilization in molecular systems.
- The effects of the environment from the perspective of quantum information scrambling in open quantum systems and within the context of quantum thermodynamics, studying how quantum entanglement influences thermodynamic behavior.
- Dynamical approaches to quantum state stabilization in molecular systems using techniques such as periodic driving fields, controlled measurements, and dissipative processes.
Quantum computing is an important application of quantum technology. The QIS activity in CSGB adopts a strategic, long-term perspective on quantum computing as a systems-based approach to map complex quantum processes onto simpler equivalent representations composed of discrete or analog quantum simulators. The key focus areas include the development of new complexity reduction approaches for quantum simulator representations of processes relevant to open quantum systems, the exploration of computational approaches using measurement-based quantum simulators and quantum cellular automata, and theoretical studies of surrogate quantum simulator models to gain fundamental insights into emergent collective phenomena in large-scale chemical systems.
Applications must demonstrate relevance to scientific problems in the CSGB domain sciences. This activity does not support research focused on engineering, device optimization, or designing/building quantum computers.
To better understand how this research area fits within the Department of Energy's Office of Science, please refer to the Basic Energy Sciences organization chart and budget request. For information on QIS efforts within Basic Energy Sciences, refer to QIS at BES.
For more information about this research area, please contact Dr. Marat Valiev.
