EuroHPC JU has taken another step towards making Europe a reference in quantum technology by signing agreements with six different countries on June 28 to host quantum computers.
In the (very) near future, these systems will be integrated into supercomputers already operating in France, Germany, Spain, Poland, Italy, and the Czech Republic to serve the European scientific community, as well as industry and the public sector – regardless of which country in Europe they are located.
Representatives from the six countries met with members of the European Commission and the EuroHPC JU in Luxembourg to sign documents that make clear the roles, rights and obligations of each party.
What is already known about each of the European quantum computers:
LUMI-Q
It will be allocated at the IT4Innovations National Supercomputing Centre in the Czech Republic, where the KAROLINA supercomputer is based. LUMI-Q involves a consortium with eight other countries: Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Norway, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.
EuroQCS-France
It will be under the GENCI (Grand Equipement National de Calcul Intensif) umbrella, initially coupled to the Joliot-Curie supercomputer and later migrated to the exascale supercomputer that is under development.A quantum simulator will also be integrated into Joliot-Curie. The consortium is also composed of Ireland, Romania and Germany.
Euro-Q-Exa
This quantum computer will be sited at SuperMUC-NG, the state-of-the-art machine at the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanites (LZR) in Germany. This is one of three national supercomputing centers Gauss Center (GCS). Euro-Q-Exa will be further upgraded in two phases to extend the capability to other European quantum computers.
EuroQCS-Italy
It will be integrated into the Leonardo supercomputer – the fourth fastest in the world, according to the TOP100 list – which is operating in CINECA’s data center in Bologna. The Italian-led consortium is joined by Germany and Slovenia.
EuroQCS-Poland
Poznan Supercomputing and Networking Center (PSNC) will host this quantum computer, which will be integrated into an HPC infrastructure in Poland.
EuroQCS-Spain
This was the first European quantum computer to be announced. It is known that it will be integrated into the MareNostrum5 pre-exascale machine, installed at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center. The consortium also includes another Spanish and a Portuguese entity, the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, in Braga.