Quantum Partnership: Universities in Alberta are collaborating to research the smallest objects in nature

Three universities in Alberta are pooling their resources to explore the fundamentals of quantum science, with a focus on driving innovation across decades.

“It’s vital now,” said Rob Thompson, vice president of research for Quantum Horizons Alberta.

“Because if we don’t keep pushing that end of our understanding of quantum [fundamentals]then we will run out of ideas in 20 or 30 years.”

Discovered in the early 1900s, quantum physics is the study of the smallest possible particles in the universe and allows for a deeper understanding of nature.

Quantum-powered technology is everywhere, from cell phones to home security systems to vehicles.

Basic science

Today’s quantum industry, which includes semiconductors and medical imaging, relies on discoveries made three decades ago, Thompson said.

Scientists from the University of Alberta, the University of Calgary and the University of Lethbridge have received $25 million in private funding to answer several questions about the quantum world, which works differently from the traditional understanding of physics.

“We’ve taken a step back and look at the basic science upon which some of today’s technologies are built,” said Andre McDonald, a mechanical engineering professor at the University of Alberta.

Dena McMartin of the University of Lethbridge said the research will go back to the basics of physics and mathematics to understand how the Earth works as a complex system and how it interacts with the solar system.

It also looks at how time moves.

“We’re fascinated by the idea that time can be more circular,” she said.

McMartin said that many First Nations communities in Canada view time as circular rather than linear, in a way that closely mirrors quantum science.

She said the Lethbridge node is working to allow native quantum scientists to explore the concepts of time and gravity.

“It’s hard to wrap our heads around how deep the questions are and how important they are.”

The University of Lethbridge has already worked on quantum gravity, quantum sensing and quantum computing, McMartin said.

“We’re looking at ways that gravity interacts with Earth and other planets, and how Earth interacts with the solar system,” she said.

Her team will also explore how technologies are built to work on Earth and in space.

Researching unanswered questions

Quantum Horizons Alberta aims to hire at least seven quantum researchers in the coming year, while also funding postdoctoral scientists and graduate students for their research.

Thompson said the specific areas of focus for the University of Calgary are still being worked out, working with the other two hubs in Edmonton and Lethbridge.

“There are series of unanswered questions,” he said.

One such question, Thompson said, is how two subatomic particles at great distances can be coupled and change each other.

“That actually fundamentally violates relativity, another branch of physics, which says information cannot travel instantaneously,” he said.

“There are still a lot of fundamental-level questions about quantum that have yet to be answered, and every time we answer one of those questions, a whole new world opens up for us to explore.”

This story was produced with the financial support of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship, who are not involved in the editorial process