Practical Quantum Computing and Simulation with Trapped Ion Systems
The hyperfine qubits in trapped atomic ions represent an ideal physical platform to store and manipulate qubits. I will discuss the advantages of this system for building practical quantum computers based on the basic physical principles, and recent technological developments that enabled construction of reliable quantum computing system capable of commercial deployment. I will share some examples of quantum algorithms and applications development based on these systems, that could lead to practical applications of quantum computers in the near term. I will conclude by discussing future prospect of reaching quantum advantage on computational or simulation tasks using trapped ion systems.
Bio: Jungsang Kim received his bachelor’s degree in physics from Seoul National University in 1992, and his Ph.D. in physics from Stanford University in 1999, working on the topic of generation and detection of single photons. He joined Bell Laboratories in 1999, where he spent five years commercializing novel technologies out of Bell Labs to build new products in optical and wireless communication systems. He joined the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Duke University in 2004, where he has been working on trapped ion quantum computing and quantum networking, high pixel- count imaging systems, and novel quantum device research. In 2015, he co-founded IonQ, focusing on commercial development of ion trap based quantum computer, and served as the Chief Technology Officer until 2024. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, Optica (formerly Optical Society of America), and the American Physical Society.