Dave Farber
2018-09-27 21:57:58 UTC
Date: September 28, 2018 at 6:50:22 AM GMT+9
Subject: US Quantum R&D Strategy Unfolding Across the Government
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Number 110: September 27, 2018
US Quantum R&D Strategy Unfolding Across the Government
At a Sept. 24 summit, the White House released an initial national strategy for advancing quantum information science, while the Department of Energy and National Science Foundation awarded $249 million in QIS grants. A Senate hearing the next day considered DOEâs role in a National Quantum Initiative.
Excitement around quantum R&D jumped to a new level this week in Washington, D.C., with events on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue illuminating Americaâs emerging national strategy for quantum information science (QIS).
On Sept. 24, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy convened a summit with leaders from federal agencies, academia, and industry to discuss how to accelerate progress in QIS and the development of QIS-based technologies. Coincident with the summit, the Trump administration released a âNational Strategic Overview for Quantum Information Scienceâ that outlines its plan for advancing the field. The Department of Energy and National Science Foundation also announced grant awards totaling $218 million and $31 million, respectively.
Meanwhile, a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing held the next day reviewed DOEâs role in QIS and made clear that the legislative push to launch a National Quantum Initiative is continuing to gain momentum.
Among the federal participants in a Sept. 24 White House summit on quantum information science were (from left) OSTP Assistant Director for Quantum Information Science Jacob Taylor, NSF Director France Córdova, DOE Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar, National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Walter Copan, and Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Mike Griffin. (Image credit â OSTP)
Grand Challenges central to âscience-firstâ quantum strategy
Produced by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), an interagency coordination body, the National Strategic Overview for QIS identifies a set of âpolicy opportunitiesâ that the federal government will address through agency-level plans that are due early next year. These plans will inform the development of an overarching strategic plan.
âEven now, while prototype QIS applications, platforms and devices are becoming commercially available, new applications and platforms will likely come from protocols and approaches that are not yet invented. Thus, the Government should maintain robust and diverse platforms and research thrusts that continue to stimulate transformative and fundamental scientific discoveries by taking an approach that puts the science first.â
Accordingly, the report continues, the âpursuit of scientific and applied Grand Challenges will be the unifying strategy.â Agencies will identify challenges in specific sub-fields such as quantum sensing, networking, and computing in their forthcoming plans. The report also anticipates solutions to such challenges will require investments in multidisciplinary teams of researchers and technologists over a period of at least ten years.
To tackle these challenges, it endorses the establishment of âjoint quantum technology research centersâ focused on pre-competitive R&D as well as âend-user testbed facilitiesâ that help stakeholders gain familiarity with new quantum technologies and explore potential applications.
It also calls for the creation of a U.S. Quantum Consortium that would assess workforce, infrastructure, and technology needs. For instance, one focus would be to help ensure there is an adequate supply of âquantum-essential supporting technologies that are not intrinsically quantum in themselves,â such as cryogenics, low-noise microwave amplifiers, and nanofabrication devices.
The report also stresses the need for a âquantum-smartâ workforce that possesses a combination of physics, computational, and engineering expertise. It identifies fundamental research as the âmain mechanismâ for fostering this workforce, but also states that the current U.S. educational system ârarelyâ provides graduates with the cross-disciplinary experience needed to solve QIS challenges.
Accordingly, academic institutions will be encouraged to take actions that ensure students are exposed to a âdiverse yet convergent set of disciplines,â such as formalizing quantum engineering as a disciplinary track and establishing training programs with industry.
Beyond strengthening the domestic workforce, the report states the U.S. should increase cooperation with âlike-mindedâ nations and âprioritize strategic bilateral partnershipsâ to access international talent and capabilities. Promoting open access to QIS research data when appropriate and advancing international standards that aid the adoption of new technologies are identified as further priority areas.
The report also acknowledges that the economic benefits of new QIS-based technologies must be weighed against the national security risks such advances could generate. Given the dual-use nature of some quantum technologies, federal agencies will both âensure consistent application of existing classification and export control mechanismsâ and strive to provide the âlargest amount of information possibleâ related to QIS research to universities and industry.
DOE laying groundwork for new quantum research centers
The Senate hearing on Sept. 25 offered a window into how the âNational Quantum Initiative Actâ is also shaping agency activities despite still being under development. The Senate version of the bill does not yet contain DOE provisions, as it originated in a separate committee that lacks jurisdiction over the department. However, Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said she is âproudâ to be working on the bill, indicating her committee plans to contribute DOE-related provisions to it.
DOE Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar noted that even though the bill has not yet been enacted, it has already stimulated conversations among national labs, universities, and industry about what form the research centers envisioned by the legislation should take.
Dabbar explicitly endorsed a provision in the House bill that directs DOE to create up to five QIS-focused R&D centers. He said that while it is important to continue supporting smaller-scale QIS research efforts, âestablishing three to five national quantum centers would anchor the national program to ensure discoveries would rapidly translate from technological advances.â
Dabbar said DOE is working on a plan to spend $120 million on QIS in fiscal year 2019, nearly double the amount it spent in fiscal year 2018. In written testimony, he also detailed how the DOE Office of Science distributed the $218 million in multiyear QIS awards announced at the White House summit across three program offices.
Of the total, the Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research is awarding $81 million to develop computing hardware and software, including two new quantum computing testbeds at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories that will operate similarly to DOEâs other national user facilities. Of the remaining amount, the Offices of Basic Energy Sciences and High Energy Physics are awarding $106 million and $31 million, respectively, to advance R&D on a wide range of topics, from quantum materials synthesis techniques to quantum-based sensors capable of detecting dark matter particles.
Contact the Author
Mitch Ambrose
American Institute of Physics
(301) 209-3095
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The Week of September 24
- White House Holds Quantum Summit
- Trump Signs DOE Funding Increase
- NSF, NIH Announce Measures to Address Sexual Harassment
- Plus: In Case You Missed It / Events / Opportunities
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© 2018 American Institute of Physics
One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740
-------------------------------------------Subject: US Quantum R&D Strategy Unfolding Across the Government
View in browser
Number 110: September 27, 2018
US Quantum R&D Strategy Unfolding Across the Government
At a Sept. 24 summit, the White House released an initial national strategy for advancing quantum information science, while the Department of Energy and National Science Foundation awarded $249 million in QIS grants. A Senate hearing the next day considered DOEâs role in a National Quantum Initiative.
Excitement around quantum R&D jumped to a new level this week in Washington, D.C., with events on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue illuminating Americaâs emerging national strategy for quantum information science (QIS).
On Sept. 24, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy convened a summit with leaders from federal agencies, academia, and industry to discuss how to accelerate progress in QIS and the development of QIS-based technologies. Coincident with the summit, the Trump administration released a âNational Strategic Overview for Quantum Information Scienceâ that outlines its plan for advancing the field. The Department of Energy and National Science Foundation also announced grant awards totaling $218 million and $31 million, respectively.
Meanwhile, a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing held the next day reviewed DOEâs role in QIS and made clear that the legislative push to launch a National Quantum Initiative is continuing to gain momentum.
Among the federal participants in a Sept. 24 White House summit on quantum information science were (from left) OSTP Assistant Director for Quantum Information Science Jacob Taylor, NSF Director France Córdova, DOE Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar, National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Walter Copan, and Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Mike Griffin. (Image credit â OSTP)
Grand Challenges central to âscience-firstâ quantum strategy
Produced by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), an interagency coordination body, the National Strategic Overview for QIS identifies a set of âpolicy opportunitiesâ that the federal government will address through agency-level plans that are due early next year. These plans will inform the development of an overarching strategic plan.
âEven now, while prototype QIS applications, platforms and devices are becoming commercially available, new applications and platforms will likely come from protocols and approaches that are not yet invented. Thus, the Government should maintain robust and diverse platforms and research thrusts that continue to stimulate transformative and fundamental scientific discoveries by taking an approach that puts the science first.â
Accordingly, the report continues, the âpursuit of scientific and applied Grand Challenges will be the unifying strategy.â Agencies will identify challenges in specific sub-fields such as quantum sensing, networking, and computing in their forthcoming plans. The report also anticipates solutions to such challenges will require investments in multidisciplinary teams of researchers and technologists over a period of at least ten years.
To tackle these challenges, it endorses the establishment of âjoint quantum technology research centersâ focused on pre-competitive R&D as well as âend-user testbed facilitiesâ that help stakeholders gain familiarity with new quantum technologies and explore potential applications.
It also calls for the creation of a U.S. Quantum Consortium that would assess workforce, infrastructure, and technology needs. For instance, one focus would be to help ensure there is an adequate supply of âquantum-essential supporting technologies that are not intrinsically quantum in themselves,â such as cryogenics, low-noise microwave amplifiers, and nanofabrication devices.
The report also stresses the need for a âquantum-smartâ workforce that possesses a combination of physics, computational, and engineering expertise. It identifies fundamental research as the âmain mechanismâ for fostering this workforce, but also states that the current U.S. educational system ârarelyâ provides graduates with the cross-disciplinary experience needed to solve QIS challenges.
Accordingly, academic institutions will be encouraged to take actions that ensure students are exposed to a âdiverse yet convergent set of disciplines,â such as formalizing quantum engineering as a disciplinary track and establishing training programs with industry.
Beyond strengthening the domestic workforce, the report states the U.S. should increase cooperation with âlike-mindedâ nations and âprioritize strategic bilateral partnershipsâ to access international talent and capabilities. Promoting open access to QIS research data when appropriate and advancing international standards that aid the adoption of new technologies are identified as further priority areas.
The report also acknowledges that the economic benefits of new QIS-based technologies must be weighed against the national security risks such advances could generate. Given the dual-use nature of some quantum technologies, federal agencies will both âensure consistent application of existing classification and export control mechanismsâ and strive to provide the âlargest amount of information possibleâ related to QIS research to universities and industry.
DOE laying groundwork for new quantum research centers
The Senate hearing on Sept. 25 offered a window into how the âNational Quantum Initiative Actâ is also shaping agency activities despite still being under development. The Senate version of the bill does not yet contain DOE provisions, as it originated in a separate committee that lacks jurisdiction over the department. However, Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said she is âproudâ to be working on the bill, indicating her committee plans to contribute DOE-related provisions to it.
DOE Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar noted that even though the bill has not yet been enacted, it has already stimulated conversations among national labs, universities, and industry about what form the research centers envisioned by the legislation should take.
Dabbar explicitly endorsed a provision in the House bill that directs DOE to create up to five QIS-focused R&D centers. He said that while it is important to continue supporting smaller-scale QIS research efforts, âestablishing three to five national quantum centers would anchor the national program to ensure discoveries would rapidly translate from technological advances.â
Dabbar said DOE is working on a plan to spend $120 million on QIS in fiscal year 2019, nearly double the amount it spent in fiscal year 2018. In written testimony, he also detailed how the DOE Office of Science distributed the $218 million in multiyear QIS awards announced at the White House summit across three program offices.
Of the total, the Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research is awarding $81 million to develop computing hardware and software, including two new quantum computing testbeds at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories that will operate similarly to DOEâs other national user facilities. Of the remaining amount, the Offices of Basic Energy Sciences and High Energy Physics are awarding $106 million and $31 million, respectively, to advance R&D on a wide range of topics, from quantum materials synthesis techniques to quantum-based sensors capable of detecting dark matter particles.
Contact the Author
Mitch Ambrose
American Institute of Physics
(301) 209-3095
More From FYI
Final FY19 Appropriations: DOE Applied Energy R&D
President Trump has signed a fiscal year 2019 spending package that rejects his proposed cuts to the Department of Energyâs applied R&D programs for the second year in a row. Funding for renewable energy R&D remains stable, while government investment in nuclear energy R&D will continue its rapid increase.
Read More >
Final FY19 Appropriations: National Nuclear Security Administration
Within a 4 percent overall budget increase for the National Nuclear Security Administration, funding for most weapons and nonproliferation R&D programs will remain steady in fiscal year 2019. Congress rejected steep proposed cuts to inertial confinement fusion programs and greenlit development of a controversial new low-yield nuclear warhead.
Read More >
The Week of September 24
- White House Holds Quantum Summit
- Trump Signs DOE Funding Increase
- NSF, NIH Announce Measures to Address Sexual Harassment
- Plus: In Case You Missed It / Events / Opportunities
Read More >
Sign Up for FYI
If this was forwarded to you, you can sign up for FYI by clicking here.
For more science policy news, visit the FYI website.
If you wish to manage your FYI preferences and alert subscriptions, please click here.
If you no longer wish to receive email from FYI, please click here to unsubscribe from all FYI emails.
Follow FYI
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