vision contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 RESEARCH PROGRAM OVERVIEW 4 RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS 7 Awards ...........................................................................................................9 MANAGEMENT & MEMBERSHIP 13 Proposed Structure and Governance .......................................................13 Members ........................................................................................................14 PUBLICATIONS 22 Refereed Journals ........................................................................................22 Refereed Conference Proceedings ...........................................................30 Books and Chapters .....................................................................................32 Student Theses .............................................................................................32 Intellectual Property ....................................................................................33 Invited Presentations at Workshops/Conferences .................................34 LINKAGE 38 Collaborations ...............................................................................................38 Visitors ............................................................................................................40 GRADUATE COURSES 41 SERVICES AND OUTREACH 43 Conferences/Workshops .............................................................................43 Professional Services ..................................................................................43 Quantum Public Lecture ..............................................................................45 Outreach Lectures ........................................................................................45 Media Coverage ...........................................................................................46 TRAINEE DESTINATIONS 49 RESEARCH GRANTS 50 OBJECTIVES FOR NEXT YEAR 51 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Alberta has presciently invested in quantum science has 36 professors and their groups plus industrial and technology from the early days when the field’s and government laboratory personnel working on benefits were mere speculation. Now quantum quantum science and technology. The five themes of science and technology is a huge endeavour the initiative are quantum chemistry and multi-scale worldwide, with billions of dollars invested by modelling, quantum foundations and quantum governments, hundreds of millions of dollars recently gravity, quantum materials, quantum nanoscience investment by Canadian federal agencies, and and technology, and quantum optics and quantum recruitment of talent by numerous universities. At this information. critical stage of quantum science and technology Quantum Alberta is an integral part of the Canadian maturing from curiosity-driven foundational research quantum mosaic. In the past year, three Canada First to strategic knowledge-transfer activities, Alberta Research Excellence Fund (CFREF) $75m awards is well poised to take a leadership role, especially were made in the quantum area: to l’Université building from its computer science, quantum de Sherbrooke, the University of Waterloo and information, nanoscience, quantum materials and the University of British Columbia. The absence quantum optics roots at the Universities of Alberta, of Alberta from this distinguished list reflects the Calgary and Lethbridge. Furthermore, Alberta has strength of other areas of research in Alberta - a quantum strengths at CanmetENERGY and the CFREF award for unconventional hydrocarbon National Institute for Nanotechnology plus companies resources at the University of Calgary and a CFREF such as Norcada, Resolved Instruments, FireWater award for future energy systems at the University Fuel and Quantum Silicon. of Alberta - and not any limitations of Alberta’s Quantum Alberta embodies quantum activities in the quantum strengths. Notably some Quantum Alberta province: the Quantum Alberta initiative is a vehicle researchers are included in both of these Alberta that provides voice to the community of science CFREF awards, but the award of three quantum researchers and technologies and a voice to the CFREF awards all outside of Alberta highlights stakeholders in the quantum science and technology the importance of Quantum Alberta as a means investment. Organizationally, Quantum Alberta to nurture networking between Alberta’s quantum emerges from the AITF-funded Institute for Quantum researchers and industry and provide a face and a Science and Technology at the University of Calgary; voice by this community to Canada and to the world. this Institute hosts 14 research groups with a total Without Quantum Alberta, Alberta’s formidable of around 100 professors and research staff and quantum strengths could be lost in the noise. students. The much larger Quantum Alberta initiative 2 QUANTUM ALBERTA The success of Quantum Alberta depends on financial support for its operation, which has historically come from Alberta Innovates Technology Futures and the Universities of Alberta, Calgary and Lethbridge. The operation is modest at this ramping- up stage: one full-time administrator, contractual support for web pages and reports, an annual workshop, and seed funding for cross-provincial collaboration between quantum researchers. The hope for Quantum Alberta is, first, successful networking by Quantum Alberta researchers and industry to create the foundation for great quantum strengths in the province and, second, to leverage this success into a strong collaborative entity nurturing great quantum science and knowledge translation for the benefit of all Albertans. 2016/2017 ANNUAL REPORT 3 RESEARCH PROGRAM OVERVIEW Quantum Alberta is an initiative undertaken by centres, and fostering nascent quantum companies quantum scientists at the Universities of Alberta, in Alberta and partnerships with companies outside Calgary and Lethbridge, plus research scientists Alberta. Quantum Alberta provides an organizational and entrepreneurs at government laboratories and structure for Alberta to achieve and maintain global in industry, with the purpose of collaborating to prominence in quantum science and technology. (i) nurture and showcase Alberta-based quantum The organization is a network of academic and research, development and activities, (ii) encourage industry experts who have joined together to elevate and support industrial, national, and international quantum science research, development and partnerships and collaborations, (iii) foster linkage commercialization in Alberta. Quantum Alberta’s between Alberta’s institutions of higher learning, vision is to elevate quantum science and technology public laboratories and facilities, and cognate in Alberta by empowering research, commercializing businesses, (iv) provide seed funding for rapid technology, and educating our future generations. exploitation of extraordinary opportunities in The mission is to be the catalyst for advancement quantum research and development, (v) develop and commercialization of Alberta-based quantum pan-provincial educational and training programs research in Canada and around the world. in quantum science, and (vi) provide product and Quantum Alberta has five research themes. business development support to new startups and These are (a) quantum chemistry and multi-scale existing Alberta ventures. Quantum Alberta operates modelling led by Alex Brown (UAlberta), (b) quantum as an interinstitutional team effort with administrative foundations and quantum gravity led by Saurya Das support that is based at the University of Calgary, (ULethbridge), (c) quantum materials led by Joseph and Quantum Alberta maintains web pages Maciejko (UAlberta), (d) quantum nanoscience and www.quantumalberta.ca and creates promotional technology led by Paul Barclay (UCalgary) and (e) materials, provincial workshops, interinstitutional quantum optics and quantum information led by research and development collaborations, and joint Christoph Simon (UCalgary). These themes foster promotional activities. opportunities to interconnect Quantum Alberta Quantum Alberta will nurture collaboration between researchers and technologists who have common universities in Alberta, linkage between Quantum interests and complementary skills and infrastructure Alberta and external quantum institutes and to build new initiatives. 4 QUANTUM ALBERTA QUANTUM CHEMISTRY & MULTI-SCALE MODELLING QUANTUM QUANTUM OPTICS & FOUNDATIONS QUANTUM & QUANTUM INFORMATION GRAVITY QUANTUM ALBERTA QUANTUM QUANTUM NANOSCIENCE & MATERIALS TECHNOLOGY In the past year, Quantum Alberta ran a competition fostering provincial-level collaborative research for funded proposals in each of the themes. Six in quantum Chemistry. Also in Theme (a), the proposals for synthesizing research efforts across proposal “Quantum cascade laser spectroscopy Alberta were submitted and all were selected for of greenhouse gases” was submitted by funding. Due to the small amount of funding granted Nasser Moazzen-Ahmadi and Kirk Michaelian. for the year, only $5000 is granted to each of the The project aims to develop next-generation six theme projects. The funding for the projects are greenhouse-gas detection methodologies based simply indicative of support and endorsement by on the use of quantum cascade lasers and Quantum Alberta and meant to seed collaborative optical parametric oscillators. Complementary efforts by quantum researchers in the province. methods, including conventional Raman and The six