IVADO’s Quantum Seminars Fall/Winter 2025

IVADO is offering a new series of seminars starting in Autumn 2025.

These IVADO Quantum Seminars aim to stimulate collaboration between the quantum physics and artificial intelligence research communities. They are part of the Alliance en Algorithmique Quantique, of which IVADO is a member.

These seminars are generally held on Fridays shortly after noon.

They are attended and lunch is provided.

Participants are asked to register and indicate their choice of lunch.

Nick Ormord (Perimeter Institute)

Abstract: TBA

Venue : Campus MIL, A.5502.1

Matthias Christandl (Institut for Matematiske Fag, University of Copenhaguen)

Abstract: Free energy calculations are at the heart of physics-based analyses of biochemical processes. They allow us to quantify molecular recognition mechanisms, which determine a wide range of biological phenomena from how cells send and receive signals to how pharmaceutical compounds can be used to treat diseases. Quantitative and predictive free energy calculations require computational models that accurately capture both the varied and intricate electronic interactions between molecules as well as the entropic contributions from motions of these molecules and their aqueous environment. However, accurate quantum-mechanical energies and forces can only be obtained for small atomistic models, not for large biomacromolecules. Here, we demonstrate how to consistently link accurate quantum-mechanical data obtained for substructures to the overall potential energy of biomolecular complexes by machine learning in an integrated algorithm. We do so using a two-fold quantum embedding strategy where the innermost quantum cores are treated at a very high level of accuracy. We demonstrate the viability of this approach for the molecular recognition of a ruthenium-based anticancer drug by its protein target, applying traditional quantum chemical methods. As such methods scale unfavorable with system size, we analyze requirements for quantum computers to provide highly accurate energies that impact the resulting free energies. Once the requirements are met, our computational pipeline FreeQuantum is able to make efficient use of the quantum computed energies, thereby enabling quantum computing enhanced modeling of biochemical processes. This approach combines the exponential speedups of quantum computers for simulating interacting electrons with modern classical simulation techniques that incorporate machine learning to model large molecules.

Venue : Campus MIL, A.5502.1

Mio Murao (School of Science, University of Tokyo)

Abstract: TBA

Venue : Campus MIL, A.5502.1

Stepan Fomichev (Xanadu)

Abstract: Truly convincing killer applications of quantum computers — ones that combine usefulness and feasibility — are still missing from the quantum ecosystem. In this talk, I will describe the guiding principles that the algorithms team at Xanadu is employing in the search for such applications. I will then review our progress, with a specific focus on applications in quantum chemistry and materials science. The talk will conclude with an overview of fruitful directions and open questions we believe are key in the search for killer applications.

Venue : Campus MIL, A.5502.1

Sergey Bravyi (IBM T.J. Watson Research Center)

Abstract: We consider the problem of simulating dynamics of classical nonlinear dissipative systems with N degrees of freedom. To make the problem tractable for quantum computers, we add a weak Gaussian noise to the equation of motion and to the initial state. Our main result is an end-to-end quantum algorithm for simulating the noisy dynamics of nonlinear systems satisfying certain sparsity and divergence-free conditions. For any constant nonzero noise rate, the quantum runtime scales polynomially with log(N), evolution time, inverse error tolerance, and the relative strength of nonlinearity and dissipation. Our main technical tool is the Kolmogorov partial differential equation describing time evolution of scalar functions of solutions averaged over noise.

Venue : Campus MIL, A.1502.1

Speaker TBA

Abstract: TBA

Venue : Campus MIL, A-5502.1

David Gosset (Institute for Quantum Computing, U. of Waterloo)

Abstract: TBA

Venue : Campus MIL,