|
Dr
Barry Sanders
Quantum Information Science
Dr
Barry Sanders has been appointed as the
iCORE Professor in Quantum Information
Science in the Department of Physics at
the University of Calgary. The research
project is funded for approximately $460,000
per year for 5 years, for a total of $2.3
million. This represents roughly 40 percent
of the total $5.5 million budget. The
University of Calgary is contributing
approximately $1.3 million over the five
years in cash and in kind.
Biographical
Information
Dr Barry Sanders obtained his BSc from
the University of Calgary and his PhD
from the University of London (Imperial
College). He was a postdoctoral research
fellow at the Australian National University
and the Universities of Waikato and Queensland.
He joined Macquarie University in 1991,
where he conducted research in quantum
physics and quantum informatics. These
topics include quantum optics, quantum
cryptography, quantum teleportation, quantum
computation and quantum networks. He was
also program manager of the Centre of
Excellence for Quantum Computer Technology
quantum algorithms project. In his role
as iCORE Professor of Quantum Information
Science at the University of Calgary,
he will seconded to Macquarie University
for 20% of each year.
In addition to his research activities,
he has acted as President of the Australian
Optical Society (AOS), an associate editor
of the AOS News, Head of Macquarie University's
Department of Physics, Chair of the Division
of Information and Communication Sciences
Research Committee, Deputy Chair of Macquarie
University's Research Grants Sub-Committee,
a member of the editorial board for the
New Journal of Physics, and Fellow of
the Australian Institute of Physics. Dr
Sanders has over 75 refereed journal publications,
maintains active international collaborations
with researchers in the USA, Canada, Europe
and Australia.
Research Program Overview
The
program is designed to establish leadership
in quantum information science by integrating
the allied disciplines of physics and
computer science, to develop and enhance
theories, to propose and experimentally
realize quantum information protocols,
and to create new technologies.
The
primary objectives of the project are:
- to
establish Alberta as a world leader
in both theoretical and experimental
research in quantum information science,
including research on new quantum information
processing algorithms and protocols,
research on experimental realizations
of quantum computers, and the development
of new physical implementations for
quantum computing paradigms;
- to
educate and train highly qualified personnel
with expertise at the cutting edge of
the allied disciplines of quantum information
science;
- to
bring together top researchers in the
world in order to further the development
of the field of quantum information
science through a focused, multidisciplinary
effort; and
- to
identify promising research areas that
will lead to valuable intellectual property
and to conduct research in these areas.
Quantum
information science, emerging from the
unification of research in computer science
and quantum physics, exploits remarkable
quantum effects to address critical issues
in nanoscale computer science. The experimental
quantum effects can supercede the capacity
of a standard computer to represent information
in binary digits of one or zero, to a
quantum computer where the numbers zero
and one can simultaneously coexist. These
quantum bits, known as qubits, can represent
information in a condensed parallel form
(superposition), depending on the number
of qubits being measured simultaneously.
This built-in parallelism with a capacity
for interference effects is a key factor
in providing quantum computing with its
power. Potential application areas of
commercial interest include quantum cryptography,
quantum computation, and quantum communication.
The
full potential of this area is not yet
known, and fundamental research into the
full capability is necessary. Examples
of other tasks that are performed better
on quantum computers continue to be discovered.
Research
Team Collaborations
In addition to Dr Sanders, the research
team will include research associates,
postdoctoral fellows, graduate students,
and staff. The iCORE Chair will build
on the substantial strengths in quantum
science with current University of Calgary
faculty, Drs Richard Cleve, John Watrous,
and Peter Hoyer in the Department of Computer
Science. Calgary's Computer Science Department
includes several other faculty members
whose research interests overlap with
quantum computing, including Professors
Lisa Higham (distributed computing), Wayne
Eberly (computer algebra), and Mike Jacobsen
(number theory and cryptography).
In
the Department of Physics, Professor Thompson's
ion trap research will juxtapose well
with planned photonic qubit experiments,
and the theoretical physics work of Professors
David Hobill and David Feder will advance
the research in fault-tolerant quantum
computation and the relativistic aspects
of QIS.
Mathematics
Department Professors Hugh Williams (iCORE
Chair) and Renate Scheidler are specialists
in cryptography and computational number
theory, with research interests that overlap
with cryptography in QIS. Professors Scheidler
and Cleve currently co-supervise MSc student
Richard Cannings, who specializes in quantum
cryptography.
Related
Links :
Dr
Sanders' Homepage
|
