Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGD
Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGD

Applied quantum computing

Center for Applied Quantum Computing (ZAQC)

Quantum computing has become something of a buzzword. In the spring of 2021, the first commercially useable quantum computer went into operation in Germany as a collaborative venture between IBM and Fraunhofer. After receiving funding approval from HMinD (Hessian Ministry for Digital Strategy and Development) and HMWK (Hessian Ministry of Science and the Arts), Fraunhofer IGD began work in the field of quantum computing in May 2022 with the goal of establishing the Center for Applied Quantum Computing (ZAQC). In line with the digital strategy of the German federal state of Hessen, ZAQC aims to identify all meaningful application opportunities for quantum computing, to evaluate, prioritize, and quickly make them usable for industry and business, as well as society as a whole.

While quantum computers can fundamentally be used in the same way as their conventional counterparts, exploiting their full potential calls for a different approach to computing, i.e., probabilistic rather than deterministic; working with entangled qubits rather than independent bits; with continuous superpositions of an exponentially growing number of states while producing digital results; and with states that cannot be copied. Only by considering these special properties—and only for certain problems—can quantum computing fulfill the promise of exponential speedups and be successfully deployed—always in the role of a coprocessor.

We are currently in the Noisy Intermediate Scale Quantum Computing (NISQ) stage of quantum computing. This means that currently available quantum computers still have a small number of qubits, as well as error-prone, noisy gates, and only briefly stable, coherent quantum states.

ZAQC is researching the types of problems that can be solved with quantum computing in the medium term. The focus is on chemical/pharmaceutical application areas, as early applicability can be expected in these fields. This is supported by close cooperation with the Innovation Center Innovative Therapeutics (TheraNova).

Current projects

Among the initial results to have emerged from the project are an internal state-of-the-art report and a tool for the interactive visualization and debugging of quantum algorithms as well as the testing of different variants of two fundamental NISQ algorithms, namely the VQE (Variational Quantum Eigensolver) and the QAOA (Quantum Alternating Operator Approach). Here, VQE is used to simulate molecules while QAOA is used to solve QUBO (Quadratic Unconstrained Binary Optimization) problems, which could be used in various combinatorial optimization problems such as optimizing schedules or traffic flows.

Access to the IBM quantum computer in Ehningen

The Center for Applied Quantum Computing (ZAQC) has access to the IBM quantum computer of the Fraunhofer Competence Network Quantum Computing in Ehningen. The IBM Q System One has 27 qubits and is suitable for testing various quantum algorithms on small examples (such as simulating H₂O in the minimal orbital basis) and for benchmarking the system’s capabilities. In the future, quantum computers promise a computational advantage in molecular simulation, as the computational cost of classical simulation methods increases exponentially with molecular complexity.

Visualization of the lowest energy molecular orbital (electron density surface) and the geometry of an H₂O molecule: On conventional computers, the complexity of determining the orbital occupancy for a given geometry increases exponentially with the number of electrons.

Web application for the interactive visualization of quantum algorithms

QCVIS was developed at the Center for Applied Quantum Computing (ZAQC) as a web application for interactive visualization of quantum algorithms, with the aim of simplifying understanding of quantum algorithms for learners of quantum computing by representing them as quantum circuits that can be edited in the application. QCVIS currently offers four different visualizations. The quantum circuits can be executed step-by-step, with all state transitions being animated to improve the comprehensibility of what happens during state transitions. Furthermore, insights from scientific and information visualization are used, e.g., the use of a perceptually uniform color space for the color representation of the phase.

 

Try it out

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The four currently available visualizations are presented in this video.