Written by Jason Barone, CAS director of communications

The Macklin Quantum Information (QI) Group, a research cluster in Miami's Department of Physics devoted to the growing field of quantum information theory, has been invited to become a node of the internationally renowned Southwestern Quantum Information and Technology (SQuInT) network.

SQuInT collaboratively investigates the intersection of various disciplines, including information science, complexity theory, computer science, and various branches of physics, chemistry, mathematics, and engineering. Miami's QI Group joins three other predominantly undergraduate American institutions within the SQuInT network: Harvey Mudd College, California Polytechnic State University, and Carleton College.

In addition, there are more than two dozen other international research universities, national institutes, national and industrial laboratories, and undergraduate institutions in the US, Canada, Australia, Mexico, and Brazil which serve as member nodes of SQuInT.

"This is a singular achievement for Miami undergraduate research and our department," said Herbert Jaeger, chair of Miami's Department of Physics. "The QI Group has made many important contributions to the burgeoning field of quantum information, and a number of our physics alumni have gone on to earn PhDs at research universities in the SQuInT network."

Physics professor Perry Rice leads Miami's QI Group, which includes fellow faculty members James Clemens, Samir Bali, and AJ Hachtel. Twelve Miami undergraduates and 8 master's students are also part of the group, collectively doing research in collaboration with VAON Corporation, the University of Maryland's Joint Quantum Institute, the Air Force Research Laboratory, and New Zealand's University of Auckland.

The SQuInT website claims to have formed its global network in order to "bridge the gaps between [quantum information science's] various arenas" and to "facilitate the exchange of resources — intellectual and human — amongst the node institutions."

Being a node of SQuInT will bring a number of unique opportunities to Miami's QI Group. Faculty and students will attend the annual SQuInT meetings and form and maintain various research collaborations. In addition, one QI Group member will serve on the SQuInT Steering Committee that decides on SQuInT governance.

"This February, undergraduate student Kaleb Campbell and graduate students Lyndon Cayayan and Ethan Clements will be presenting their research at the Annual SQuInT Workshop in Albuquerque, New Mexico," Jaeger added.

SQuInT's member nodes are:

Research Universities

• Stanford University, Applied Physics
• Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Investigacionnes Matemáticas
• Aplicadas y en Sistemas (IIMAS)
• University of California, Berkeley, Physics
• University of California, Santa Barbara, Physics
• University of California, San Diego, Mathematics
• University of Oregon, Physics
• University of Southern California, Electrical Engineering
• University of Washington, Physics

National Centers and Institutes

• Center for Quantum Information and Control (CQuIC): University of New Mexico, University of Arizona
• Hearne Institute for Theoretical Physics, Louisiana State University
• Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, Caltech (IQIM)
• Joint Quantum Institute (JQI): University of Maryland, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg

National Laboratories

• Quantum Information Science Initiative, Information Science and Technology Center, Los Alamos National Laboratory
• National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder
• Sandia National Laboratories
• Quantum Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (QuAIL), NASA Ames Research Center

Industrial Laboratories

• HRL Laboratories
• Northrup Grumman Corporation
• The Aerospace Corporation
• Quantum Architectures and Computation Group (QuARC), Microsoft Research
• Quantum Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (QuAIL), Google Research

Undergraduate Institutions

• California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Physics
• Carleton College, Physics
• Harvey Mudd College, Physics International Centers and Institute
• Miami University, Physics

International Centers and Institutes

• Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum System, consortium of four Australian universities (University of Queensland, University of Sydney, Macquarie University, and University of Western Australia)
• Institute for Quantum Information Science, University of Calgary
• National Institute of Science and Technology for Quantum Information (INCTIQ), a consortium of fifteen Brazilian institutions