Quantum science will change the world. This is no exaggeration. It’s happening.
These words were shared last November by Dr. Paul Smith, Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Perimeter Institute of Theoretical Physics.
Perimeter, as many of you know, is one of Canada’s leading research institutions in quantum science. Within its concrete-and-glass walls in Waterloo, researchers are pushing the boundaries of humanity’s understanding of phenomena at the atomic and subatomic scale.
If anyone doubted Dr. Smith’s prognostication in November, few will question it now. Seven months into 2025—also known as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology—innovation in the field of spins, qubits and entanglement is accelerating.
Canada is playing an outsized role in the quantum transformation. Researchers and organizations from Ontario to British Columbia are cracking problems previously thought to be decades away, as described by Lisa Lambert, CEO of Quantum Industry Canada, in The Globe and Mail.
We also house more small- and medium-sized businesses per capita working in quantum than any other country. According to a study commissioned by the National Research Council of Canada (NRC), and cited in Canada’s National Quantum Strategy, the quantum sector is predicted to become a $139 billion industry in Canada by 2045, with more than 200,000 jobs and $42 billion in returns, potentially contributing 3% to Canada’s GDP.
In honour of Canada’s leadership, we compiled a “top 5” list of world-first milestones by Canadian researchers and organizations this year in quantum.
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This July, scientists at Perimeter and TRIUMF in Vancouver announced first time research that merges quantum annealing technology with generative AI to simulate particle collisions more efficiently. The demonstration provides a way to alleviate real-world computational bottlenecks that otherwise impact particle physics researchers.
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In June, Xanadu Quantum Technologies published a first-ever demonstration in Nature of generating error-resistant qubits in a pulse of laser light on an integrated chip platform. The development offers a pathway for scalable quantum computing, since if multiple chips are combined, it could enable a quantum computer capable of producing reliable results with practical value.
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Also in the race for quantum error correction, Nord Quantique announced in May another breakthrough approach using multimode encoding to produce qubits instead of the conventional single-mode approach. This means the same hardware performs calculations and verifies the results, offering a potential avenue to scale.
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In February, Photonic published yet another world-first pathway for quantum error correction using Quantum Low-Density Parity Check (QLDPC) codes. This approach also efficiently performs both quantum computation and error correction and uses materially fewer qubits than traditional surface codes.
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Beyond quantum computing, in March researchers at the University of Ottawa published a study in Nature showing a breakthrough approach to controlling the ejection of electrons from atoms and molecules, thus ionizing them. This was achieved with a type of light called an optical vortex beam and holds the promise to transform a wide range of fields, including medical imaging.
These are just some of the ways Canadian researchers are leading the charge on quantum. Is there another quantum science or technology breakthrough that should be on this list? Write to us, and let us know.
Also, quick shout out to the Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute at UBC for this CBC segment, which is an excellent piece of science communications on quantum for the general public.
Here is to Canada’s quantum future!
