News

As the year comes to an end, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude for your support and dedication throughout the past year. We wish you a holiday season filled with joy and tranquility, and we eagerly anticipate a new year that brings happiness and achievements, both great and small.

The Technical University of Munich (TUM) has appointed MQV member Dr. habil. Hans Hübl as Adjunct Professor in recognition of his outstanding achievements in research and teaching in the field of quantum science and technology.

For 13 years, the PhotonLab, the student laboratory at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, has been welcoming everyone who wants to learn about lasers, light and quantum physics. As of this Friday, a total of 22,222 students have visited the PhotonLab to experiment together.

Matthias Althammer, research group leader at the Walther Meissner Institute (WMI) of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW) has been awarded one of the highly prestigious Consolidator Grants of the European Research Council (ERC). The research grant will fund a project that conducts MQV-related research.

Experience cutting-edge research in quantum technology! In the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology 2025, the member institutes of Munich Quantum Valley open their doors and provide insights into their research through lectures and laboratory tours.

From 17 to 22 November, Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) was present at the International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage, and Analysis (SC24) in Atlanta, Georgia.

From 12 to 15 November 2024, Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) took part in electronica with a joint booth with the “World of Quantum”. With 3,480 exhibitors spread across 18 exhibition halls and around 80,000 visitors this year, electronica is the leading trade fair and conference for the entire spectrum of electronics.

On 11 and 12 November, the symposium "Towards applications of quantum computing" took place. The event was organized by Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) together with the Fraunhofer Institute for Cognitive Systems IKS, supported by Bayern Innovativ and QUTAC. The symposium brought together representatives from industry and science working on quantum computing applications with hardware and software developers.

On 24 and 25 October 2024, the Munich Quantum Software Forum took place for the second time. Organized by the Chair of Design Automation at the Technical University of Munich, the event brings together the "who's who" of quantum computing software. Once again, the extremely high attendance shows the great interest of the community.

On 7 October, a new building of the Max Planck Society's Semiconductor Laboratory (HLL) was opened on the Garching research campus. The state-of-the-art infrastructure plays a central role in the new cooperation between the HLL, the Technical University of Munich and the Walther Meißner Institute for the joint development of superconducting quantum bits, which was agreed as part of Munich Quantum Valley.

From 8 to 11 October 2024, the members of Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) met in Eichstätt for their internal Annual Meeting. In numerous presentations and discussions, the progress of the individual sub-projects and their contribution to the overall project were intensively debated and the focus was sharpened on the future.

Once again, Munich Quantum Valley was present at the Quantum Effects trade fair in Stuttgart.

A research team from Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ), in collaboration with the start-up planqc, has achieved a breakthrough on the way to scalable quantum computers. They assembled a quantum register of 1200 atoms and were then able to operate it continuously for over an hour.

On 3 October, Munich Quantum Valley, in collaboration with the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre, took part in the campus-wide Open Day at the Garching research campus. The flow of visitors continued until the end of the event.

As part of the 'Munich Quantum Valley' Lighthouse Project IQ-Sense, researchers at the Technical University of Munich have developed a new method for the optical detection of MRI signals using diamond-based quantum sensors. In collaboration with the Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, the researchers now want to make their method applicable for clinical use in the field of cancer monitoring, for which they have received the Medical Valley Award.

Last week, Quantum Diamonds hosted the official launch of its new device. The start-up from the Munich Quantum Valley ecosystem presented its new, high-resolution quantum microscope to an invited audience of investors and supporters from industry and academia at its facilities in Werk 1 of Munich's Werksviertel.

Yesterday, planqc opened its new premises in Garching. Together with representatives from politics and industry as well as investors, the start-up, which is the first start-up to emerge from Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), celebrated this important step.

From 15 to 20 September 2024, the IEEE International Conference on Quantum Computing and Engineering (QCE) took place in Montreal. This year, Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) was represented with a stand in addition to numerous contributions.

The ion-trap quantum computer from Alpine Quantum Technologies, procured by the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre and Munich Quantum Valley, is now operational at LRZ's Quantum Integration Centre, making it the first of its kind in a computing center.

MQV is a partner in the joint project Quanten(t)räume – a play of German word quantum spaces and quatum dreams – funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Starting next Tuesday, the project will offer regular opportunities to find out about the state of research in the field of quantum technologies, ask questions to the experts and contribute your own ideas for useful applications.

Today sees the launch of the new video series "Quick Quantum Questions" on the Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) YouTube channel.

The first meeting of the Munich Quantum Alumni Network took place last week. In a casual atmosphere, current and former members of the scientific community were invited to exchange ideas and network.

On 4 July 2024, the traditional Bavarian Evening took place as part of the 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. This year, the conference focused on quantum physics and quantum technologies. Munich Quantum Valley contributed to the program of the Bavarian Evening with a booth and QuantenSchafkopf.

MQV start-up planqc has just announced the successful closing of its first significant round of venture capital funding.

As in previous years, Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) was present at the FORSCHA trade fair from 28 to 30 June, which took place as part of the Munich Science Days in the Verkehrszentrum of the Deutsches Museum. At the same time, the Deutsches Museum celebrated the Island Festival over the weekend. The MQV was also on site with experiments and exhibits.

Yesterday, Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) invited industry partners and researchers to the first "MQV Supplier Workshop" in Garching. The event aimed to constructively connect representatives from industry and academia within the MQV ecosystem and strengthen the quantum community.

On 18 June 2024, the special exhibition "Light and Matter", which was developed in cooperation with the Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST), opened at the Deutsches Museum. Scheduled to run until the end of 2025, visitors to the exhibition can learn about the basics of quantum optics starting today.

At the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre, a quantum computer based on superconducting qubits has been successfully connected to the SuperMUC-NG supercomputer. Initial tests show that the two technologies work together, enabling hybrid quantum computing. Today, the system has been formally unveiled.

As announced today, the MQV start-up has been selected to join the World Economic Forum’s Innovator Communities in the Technology Pioneers 2024 Cohort.

Under the motto "Impulses from Bavaria", the Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts invited guests to the Bavarian State Representation in Berlin to present the Hightech Agenda Bavaria. Munich Quantum Valley supported the evening with a booth.

The Ostbayerische Technische Hochschule (OTH) Regensburg is one of the first universities in Germany to receive a quantum key exchange system. The system, which was acquired as part of a Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) research professorship, was officially inaugurated this Wednesday by Markus Blume, Minister of State for Science and the Arts.

Last Saturday, Munich Quantum Valley took part in the Open Day of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, informing the numerous visitors about the basics of quantum physics and research into quantum computers.

15 students aged 14 and 15 took part in the Girls'Day program of Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), which was held this year in collaboration with and at the Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Microsystems and Solid State Technologies (EMFT).

Last week, the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW) hosted a symposium on the topic of "Quantum technologies. Expectations of an important future technology" at its premises in the Munich Residence. Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) was one of the co-organizers.

In close collaboration between computer scientists and physicists, MQV scientists have worked out foundations for the comprehensive development of compilers for neutral-atom quantum computers. The aim of the researchers is to create a common basis and further expand interdisciplinary collaboration.

In an exciting development for the quantum technology sector in Munich and Bavaria, Munich Quantum Valley, Invest in Bavaria and TUM Venture Lab Quantum jointly launch the Quantum Landing Pad.

At no less than three conferences in three weeks, Munich Quantum Valley welcomed interested visitors to its booths this March. At the March Meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) in Minneapolis and at the Spring Meetings of the German Physical Society (DPG) in Freiburg and Berlin, MQV was presenting Bavarian quantum research.

Earlier this month, the European Innovation Council (EIC) announced that Qlibri's QlibriNANO, the world's most sensitive absorption microscope, is among the projects selected to receive a grant of up to €2.5 million.

Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), together with other local partners, is supporting the Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST) in organizing the "Quantum Talents Symposium" on 16 and 17 September 2024 in Munich. Young talents from the quantum sciences are invited to apply as symposium finalists.

With the support of Munich Quantum Valley, the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW) is organizing the symposium "Quantum Technologies. Expectations of an important future technology" with top-class lectures.

At this week's meeting of the Bavarian Cabinet on science and future technologies, Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) was highlighted as one of the central pillars of Bavaria's strategy for the future.

This year, Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) will once again be exhibiting at the March Meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) in Minneapolis and at the Spring Meetings of the German Physical Society (DPG) in Freiburg and Berlin.

GALaQSci uses augmented reality and artificial intelligence to make the quantum world accessible in a playful way.

In cooperation with Munich Quantum Valley, the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre is procuring a quantum computer based on trapped-ion technology.

Earlier this week, MQV ecosystem start-up QuantumDiamonds announced a very successful 7 million euro seed funding round led by IQ Capital and Earlybird.

The trade fair season is slowly coming to an end, but also in October Munich Quantum Valley was present at two events in Germany.

On 3 October 2023, the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, together with Munich Quantum Valley and the Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology, invited children and adults alike to take a look behind the doors of the institute and learn about the world of quantum optics and its technological applications, such as quantum computing.

From 26 to 28 September 2023, Munich Quantum Valley met in Eichstätt to discuss the progress of the various individual sub-projects over the past year and to identify new synergies and goals for the next years.

Opening the doors for young and old is the motto on 3 October 2023 at the Garching research campus. The Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), the Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST) and the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics (MPQ) jointly invite to get to know the world of quantum (optics) with a colorful program.

The Quantum Future Academy (QFA) brings together young talents in the field of quantum technologies. The first part of the binational event took place in Israel in February. The second week-long academy in Germany concluded this year's program this past week.

Around 400 people from all over the world participated in the second edition of the Superconducting Qubits and Algorithms (SQA) Conference taking place 29 August - 1 September 2023. The conference was jointly organized by IQM Quantum Computers, Technical University of Munich and Munich Quantum Valley.

On 1 August 2023, Prof. Dr. Rudolf Gross becomes Scientific Director of Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) and Managing Director of Munich Quantum Valley e.V.. The physicist will take over the tasks from Prof. Dr. Rainer Blatt, who hands over the baton to Rudolf Gross after about two years.

Together with the Fraunhofer Institute for Cognitive Systems (IKS), Munich Quantum Valley organized the symposium "Applications of Quantum Computing" in Garching on 10 and 11 July. Experts from industry and academic research were invited to discuss possible applications of quantum computing.

From July 6 to 8, Munich Quantum Valley was part of the Festival of the Future on the Museum Island in Munich. At the booth, on panels and in workshops, MQV together with MCQST, PhotonLab and QL3 informed the diverse audience about quantum technologies.

From 27 to 30 June, the World of QUANTUM, took place at the Munich Trade Fair Center. Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) was present with a booth and organized a full-day scientific program together with IBM Quantum.

The Bavarian Minister of State for Science & the Arts Markus Blume visits the MPQ & LMU laboratories of the MQV to find out about the progress of the projects and to discuss technology transfer and research strategies with the researchers.

The Bench-QC lighthouse project aims to find out when quantum computers deliver better results than classical high-performance computers. The joint project is funded through the Hightech Agenda by the Free State of Bavaria until the end of 2025 as part of the Munich Quantum Valley (MQV).

A team of researchers from the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW), the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM) have demonstrated nonreciprocal behavior of magnons in an insulating antiferromagnet, allowing the development of nonreciprocal magnonic devices.

Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), a leading German quantum hub, and IBM Quantum will host experts from academia and industry to present at their joint World of QUANTUM program: "Quantum Technologies: From Research to Application". The full-day program will take place 29 June 2023 as part of the World of QUANTUM fair in Munich (27–30 June 2023).

Munich Quantum Valley brings together experts from academic and industrial research to discuss issues related to the potential applications of quantum computing.

A team of researchers from the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW) and the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have resolved a longstanding discrepancy between the classical and quantum description of the nonlinear Duffing oscillator by studying the quantum dynamics of a model system consisting of a tunable nonlinear superconducting resonator.

On Friday, 12 May, the symposium "Quantum Computing meets Cyber Security" took place in Garching. Munich Quantum Valley together with the University of the Bundeswehr Munich (UniBW) and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) invited experts to discuss cyber risks in the age of quantum computers.

From 5 to 7 May, Munich Quantum Valley was part of the FORSCHA, which took place as part of the Munich Science Days at the Deutsches Museum Verkehrszentrum. Around 8,000 visitors attended the interactive festival of knowledge.

Ten female students aged 14 to 16 took part in Munich Quantum Valley's Girls'Day event. At the Walther Meissner Institute of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, they were able to learn about the profession of (quantum) scientist through a diverse program.

As announced by the Ger­man Aerospace Cen­ter (DLR) today, planqc will develop a quantum computer with more than 100 qubits using neutral atoms at the DLR Innovation Center in Ulm as part of the DLR Quantum Computing Initiative (QCI).

The MQV member and director of the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ) receives the award for his groundbreaking experimental research on quantum simulations with ultracold atoms.

Munich Quantum Valley was represented with a booth at the DPG Spring Meeting of the Condensed Matter Section (SKM) as part of the Exhibition of Scientific Instruments and Literature from March 28 to 30.

Munich Quantum Valley took part in two conferences in the first week of March: At the DPG Spring Meeting of the Atomic, Molecular, Quantum Optics and Photonics Section (SAMOP) in Hannover as well as at the March Meeting of the American Physical Society (APS March Meeting) in Las Vegas, MQV presented itself with a booth.

Quantum computers could solve problems beyond the capabilities of current classical computers. In parallel, powerful quantum technologies pose a new threat to security systems. The symposium Quantum Computing meets Cyber Security brings together experts to discuss cyber security issues.

Listen to a podcast [in German] with our Scientific Director Rainer Blatt about quantum computing in practice.

The Quantum Future Academy (QFA) is a bi-national event that brings together students from Israel and Germany in two week-long academies on quantum technologies. The first part of the program in Israel takes place this week.

Four research groups of the University of Regensburg (UR) started their work in the lighthouse project "Quantum circuits with spin qubits and hybrid Josephson junctions" at the beginning of the year. Within the project, which is funded by the Free State of Bavaria as part of the Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), they are investigating central components of possible future quantum computers based on semiconductor spin qubits and superconducting qubits.

The lighthouse project IQ-Sense began its work at the beginning of the year. As one of currently seven projects, it is funded by the Free State of Bavaria within the framework of Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) and aims to develop quantum sensors for application in biology and medicine.

Today we celebrate the first anniversary of the foundation of the Munich Quantum Valley e.V. and look back on a successful year together with the Scientific Director of MQV, Prof. Rainer Blatt.

On this occasion, we are also releasing our first public annual report.

Funded by the Free State of Bavaria as part of Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), QuMeCo is set to explore new and better measurement and control methods for quantum systems and took up its work at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) beginning of January.

As part of the Bavarian State Government's Hightech Agenda Plus, the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy (StMWi) supports innovative, company-driven collaborative projects within MQV.

The joint project, which is funded by the Free State of Bavaria as part of Munich Quantum Valley (MQV), will start on 1 January 2023. Scientists from five MQV institutes will work on networks of different quantum systems.

The Munich Quantum Valley Doctoral Fellowship Program is now open for a start in 2023. The program aims to recruit exceptional students to support them in their early-career progress. The call for applications just started and is open until 15 January 2023.

The 2023 Quantum Future Academy will be held as a bi-national event! For the first time, students from Israel and Germany will be attending two one-week academies about quantum technologies. The first part will take place in Israel, 19–26 February 2023, while the second part will be in Germany, 3–10 September 2023.

Last week, the Munich Quantum Valley community came together at the Stadttheater Eichstätt for its first internal Review Meeting. A fantastic opportunity to get together scientists and members from all research areas within MQV.

Earlier this week, the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) announced that the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre (LRZ) will be one of six sites to host the first European quantum computers.

As part of the Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) initiative, the Free State of Bavaria is supporting six outstanding doctoral students in their research in the field of quantum sciences with doctoral scholarships of around 200,000 euros each. The internationally selected top talents will conduct research at the Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU), the Ludwig Maximilian University Munich (LMU) and the Technical University of Munich (TUM).

With funds from the Hightech Agenda Bavaria, the Free State of Bavaria is supporting five basic-research projects in the field of quantum sciences with a total of about 17 million euros as part of the Munich Quantum Valley initiative. Acknowledging the expertise available at universities and research institutions throughout Bavaria, the interdisciplinary and cross-university Lighthouse Projects promote Bavaria's leading role in the field of quantum technologies.

Quantum computing startup planqc today announced a financing round of EUR 4.6 million led by UVC Partners and Speedinvest. With this funding, planqc will develop a highly scalable quantum computer operating at room temperature that is based on atoms trapped in optical lattices. planqc was founded by a team of scientists from the Max-Planck-Institute of Quantum Optics and Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich and is the first startup to emerge from Munich Quantum Valley, one of the leading quantum technology hubs in Europe.

The first Bavarian Distinguished Professorship has been awarded to Prof. Dr.-Ing. Robert Wille, who previously taught in Linz and now holds the newly established Chair for Design Automation at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). As part of Bavaria’s Hightech Agenda, the Distinguished Professorship Program is intended to bring standout scientific experts to Bavarian universities. Each appointment made in the program is endowed with as much as five million euros for five years.

The universities in Augsburg, Würzburg, Erlangen-Nuremberg and Munich, as well as the technical universities of applied sciences in Regensburg and Nuremberg, will receive around twenty million euros in funding from Bavaria's High-Tech Agenda to enable them to further strengthen their profile in quantum sciences and quantum technologies.

A quantum system consisting of only 51 charged atoms can assume more than two quadrillion different states. Calculating the system's behavior is a piece of cake for a quantum simulator. Yet even with todays supercomputers it is almost impossible to verify the result. Researchers of the Munich Quantum Valley (MQV) initiative and the University of Innsbruck have now shown how these systems can be described using equations from the 18th century.

The Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST) is hosting a series of three different talks by Harvard physicist and MCQST Distinguished Lecturer Mikhail Lukin in Munich in May.

Making young scientists fit for quantum technologies: The universities in Augsburg, Bayreuth, Erlangen-Nuremberg, Munich, Regensburg, and Würzburg will each receive around 144,000 euros in funding from the High-Tech Agenda Bavaria.

The call for Lighthouse Projects for research, development and applications in the area of quantum sciences and quantum technologies is now open. The Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy and the Bavarian State Ministry of Science and Arts funds so-called Lighthouse Projects as a part of the MQV initiative. These projects should use innovative concepts to cover a broad range of quantum sciences and quantum technologies.

Just one year after the Bavarian state government issued its declaration of intent, the founding document was signed ceremonially at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities to mark the formal establishment of the Munich Quantum Valley as a registered association. Supplementing the funding of 300 million euros from Bavaria’s Hightech Agenda the initiative’s members have already raised federal funds totaling more than 80 million euros.

The Bavarian Minister of Economic Affairs Hubert Aiwanger has handed over funding certificates totaling 52 million euros for the development of a Bavarian quantum computer.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder are delighted by their impressions into research and networks at MPQ and express their further support.

Quantum research could be the spring of the next big technological revolution and a seed for wealth. A good reason for German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder to visit the Max-Planck-Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching near Munich, one of the top places in quantum research in the world, to see the current state of science and its prospects for the future. The State of Bavaria has recently funded the new Munich Quantum Valley initiative with 300 million euros, while the German Federal State provides 2 billion for quantum research as part of its economic stimulus package. The MPQ plays a central role in this development due to its world-renowned expertise and excellent international networks.

The BMW Group will support future research on quantum computers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). The contract establishing the endowed chair for Quantum Algorithms and Applications ("Quantenalgorithmen und -anwendungen") was signed by TUM president Thomas F. Hofmann, BMW AG Board of Management member Frank Weber and BMW AG CIO Alexander Buresch.

Bavaria's leading scientists and universities kick off a new research initiative to promote quantum science and develop new quantum technologies. The Free State of Bavaria is supporting the project with 300 million euros.