UMD Faculty Join Two NSF Projects to Advance Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computing

Three University of Maryland faculty members are part of two newly selected National Science Foundation projects that aim to overcome one of quantum computing's biggest challenges: correcting errors well enough to make large-scale, practical quantum computers possible.

Alexey Gorshkov and Victor Albert are contributing to a project developing fault-tolerant quantum computing systems, while Xiaodi Wu is part of a separate effort exploring new approaches to quantum error correction. Together, the projects will help shape the National Science Foundation's National Quantum Virtual Laboratory (NQVL), a national initiative to accelerate the development of quantum technologies.

The two projects involving UMD researchers are among five NSF design efforts announced last week. Each project will receive $4 million over two years, part of a $20 million NSF investment in the five newly selected efforts. Combined with four projects selected in 2025, they bring the total number of NQVL design projects to nine.

The NQVL is intended to provide researchers across the country with access to specialized facilities, tools and expertise needed to develop next-generation quantum technologies. The initiative is part of NSF's broader effort to strengthen U.S. leadership in quantum science and technology and advance the goals of the National Quantum Initiative Act.

Gorshkov and Albert are physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and senior investigators in the NSF Quantum Leap Challenge Institute for Robust Quantum Simulation (RQS). They both hold adjunct appointments in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS). Wu is an associate professor of computer science with a joint appointment in UMIACS and is also an RQS senior investigator.

Gorshkov and Albert are contributing to Accelerating Fault-Tolerant Quantum Logic, a UCLA-led project headed by Eric Hudson. The effort seeks to speed the development of fault-tolerant quantum computers by simultaneously designing quantum error-correcting codes, hardware systems and algorithms rather than developing each component independently.

Fault tolerance is widely viewed as a prerequisite for achieving quantum computers capable of solving practical problems beyond the reach of conventional computers. Current quantum systems remain highly susceptible to errors, and existing approaches often require either extremely low error rates or very large numbers of qubits.

The researchers plan to develop a preliminary design for a 60-logical-qubit fault-tolerant quantum computer based on trapped-ion technology. By co-designing hardware and error-correction strategies, they hope to reduce the resources needed to achieve reliable quantum computation and accelerate the path toward practical quantum advantage.

“Fault tolerance is the milestone that will move quantum computing from promising demonstrations to a technology that can solve meaningful scientific and engineering problems,” Albert said. “What's exciting about this project is that we're bringing together experts in hardware, software and quantum error correction to tackle that challenge as a single system instead of as separate pieces.”

Wu is part of Erasure Qubits and Dynamic Circuits for Quantum Advantage (ERASE), a Yale-led project headed by Steve Girvin. The effort is developing new approaches to error detection and correction using superconducting quantum hardware that can identify when and where certain errors occur.

The project centers on so-called "erasure flag" qubits, which provide information about the location of errors and could make quantum error correction significantly more efficient. Researchers will develop hardware, software and algorithms designed specifically for this architecture while creating a national testbed that allows scientists across the country to experiment with new error-correction techniques and quantum computing applications.

The effort also aims to foster collaboration among researchers working in quantum hardware, software and algorithms, creating a shared platform for exploring new approaches to large-scale quantum computing.

“Building practical quantum computers isn't just about better hardware,” Wu said. “We also need new ways for hardware, software and algorithms to work together. By creating a shared research platform, this project will give scientists across the country new opportunities to develop and test ideas that could accelerate the arrival of reliable quantum computing.”

NSF also selected three additional projects. One will develop a quantum networking system capable of transmitting quantum information roughly 100,000 times faster than current quantum networks over distances of approximately 60 miles. Another will design quantum sensors, including protein-based qubits, for measuring chemical properties inside materials and living cells. A third will focus on portable, chip-based quantum sensors that can operate outside the highly controlled laboratory environments typically required for such technologies.

The five newly selected projects include researchers from institutions in 20 states and partnerships with federal agencies, national laboratories and more than two dozen companies, including Boeing, Honeywell, IonQ, NVIDIA and Quantinuum. NSF is also supporting education and workforce development activities associated with the projects, including K–12 curriculum development and STEM outreach.

NSF expects to select the first projects to advance from the design phase to implementation later in 2026, subject to congressional appropriations.

—Story by UMIACS communications group