Excellent evaluation report for QuTech
An international review committee, chaired by professor Robbert Dijkgraaf, is ‘unreservedly positive about the success of QuTech in the past, and fully endorses the institute in the years to follow’. Dijkgraaf presented the evaluation report to TU Delft and TNO on Wednesday March 27, 2019. Tim van der Hagen, President of TU Delft: “This excellent report is the result of the commitment and very hard work of many people in QuTech. I am proud that the review committee confirms QuTech is firmly on the right track.” The ultimate goal of QuTech, a collaboration between TU Delft and TNO, is to develop a quantum computer and quantum internet.
Highly successful
The committee is impressed by the ‘enormous progress the relatively young institute QuTech has made and by the professional organization it has established’. The committee sees an institute with world-class-quality research, with influential breakthrough experiments and theory published in leading journals. At the same time, QuTech has been successful in attracting many academic, industrial and societal partners to its endeavours, both in terms of funding and in the set-up of a quantum community and quantum campus surrounding its activities. “We are delighted that the committee fully endorsed the quality, viability and relevance to society of QuTech, said Paul de Krom, CEO of TNO.
Bold vision
In 2014, TU Delft and TNO had the ‘had the bold vision to bring their organizations together’ in a mission-driven research centre that aims to develop scalable prototypes of a quantum computer and quantum internet. In 2015, the cooperation was formalized in a solid ten-year financial commitment, strongly supported by the Dutch Ministries of Economic Affairs and Education, Culture and Science, NWO and the Dutch Top Sector High-Tech Systems and Materials (HTSM). This review is the first in that period and covers the period between 2015 and 2018. Ronald Hanson, Scientific Director of QuTech: “This review provides us with confidence and with valuable input for the future as we develop our institute for the next steps towards the quantum computer and quantum internet.”
National agenda
Quantum technologies are expected to have major societal and economic impacts. The unique power of future quantum computers and quantum internet will be applicable to grand societal challenges such as energy, health and security. Besides strong continued support for QuTech, the committee also endorses the initiative of a national ‘quantum agenda’ and feels that QuTech is in a position to coordinate the establishment of such an inclusive national programme. This ambition could solidify the position of the Netherlands in the international quantum domain.
Related: the press release by QuTech and the research reviews of QANU.
*) Main image – left to right: Ronald Hanson, Scientific Director QuTech, Tim van der Hagen, President TU Delft, Robbert Dijkgraaf Chair review committee, Peter Werkhoven, CSO TNO
Photo credits: Marieke de Lorijn