Project Grant 2540171

This Project Grant award of $477,555 was awarded on April 1, 2026, by the National Science Foundation's Division of Information and Intelligent Systems under the Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) program (CFDA 47.070). The five-year research initiative, titled "CAREER: SQALE: Scalable Quantum Architectures with LDPC Error-Correction," is being conducted by the University of Arizona and will conclude on March 31, 2031. The project addresses critical challenges in quantum computing by developing scalable solutions for quantum error correction and fault tolerance. Specifically, the research will develop methods to network multiple small quantum processors and leverage network-provided entanglement to overcome the engineering constraints of implementing long-range qubit interactions in quantum hardware—a limitation that currently impedes practical quantum computing applications across various quantum technologies including superconducting circuits, neutral atoms, and photonic systems.

The anticipated deliverables from this research will advance quantum computing capabilities with applications spanning digital security, drug discovery, and materials design. By developing scalable quantum architectures that circumvent long-range interaction requirements through distributed networking approaches, this project aims to contribute foundational research that supports the practical deployment of quantum computing systems. The research aligns with NSF's CISE program objectives to advance investigator-initiated research and innovation in computing and information science and engineering, with the outcomes expected to have significant positive societal impact through enabling next-generation computational capabilities.