Publication date: 23/04/19
ThemesNews
The "Quantum Science and Technologies at the European Campus" (QUSTEC) project, a joint international and interdisciplinary doctoral programme in quantum science and technologies, has been selected by the European Commission. Led by Eucor - The European Campus, it will bring together the universities of Basel, Freiburg-en-Breisgau and Strasbourg, as well as the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and IBM Research Zurich.
The ambition of the QUSTEC programme is to address some of the great contemporary challenges posed by quantum science. The principles of quantum mechanics, which govern physics, chemistry, materials science and atomic-scale computing, have already triggered a wave of new technologies. When applied to new fields, quantum technologies represent a leap forward that can be a game-changer in many sectors and European markets during the 21st century.
The QUSTEC programme aims to contribute to this through its four-year doctoral training and research programme, resolutely international in orientation, and embracing all the major fields of quantum science. Young researchers will be free to choose their home university from participating institutions and will have the opportunity to collaborate with industrial partners from the Upper Rhine and surrounding regions. The project reinforces the positioning of Eucor - The European Campus in its strategic priority axis "quantum sciences and technologies".
"Quantum science is an interdisciplinary field from which new technologies can emerge precisely because of the multitude of perspectives," says Guido Pupillo, scientific director of the programme and director of the Quantum Physics Laboratory at the Institute of Supramolecular Science and Engineering (ISIS) of the University of Strasbourg. "We want to bring together young researchers from around the world in the Upper Rhine to conduct fundamental research and work on applications such as new secure communication networks, more accurate sensors, the development of new quantum materials, and prototypes of quantum computers”.
The institutions have combined their expertise to train 39 PhD students in this rapidly expanding field. The programme benefits from five-year funding totalling €9.1 million. The €4.2 million allocation from the European Union is complemented by co-financing from partner institutions, as well as from Santander Universities, a sponsor of higher education institutions. The QUSTEC project was launched with the support of the Franco-German University.
