I-Corps: Translation Potential of Fault-Tolerant Modular Quantum Software

Award ID: 2630681

This I-Corps project is based on the development of a modular quantum software platform designed to help scientists and engineers use future fault-tolerant quantum computers for complex modeling, simulation, and optimization. Many important problems in chemistry, materials science, energy, manufacturing, and engineering remain difficult or costly because existing computational methods cannot efficiently capture all relevant physical effects at useful scales. This technology addresses this challenge by assembling reusable quantum-algorithm components into adaptable workflows that can evolve alongside rapidly improving quantum hardware. It is able to support tasks such as molecular property prediction, materials modeling, dynamical simulation, differential equations, and optimization. This may reduce the time and cost required to develop advanced materials and technologies, improve access to quantum computing tools, and create opportunities in scientific software, cloud computing, research services, and industry-specific simulation products. This I-Corps project utilizes experiential learning coupled with first-hand investigation of the industry ecosystem to assess the translation potential of a fault-tolerant modular quantum software platform based on quantum signal processing, quantum singular value transformation, and block-encoding techniques. This technology provides reusable software components for converting matrices, functions, and scientific models into quantum circuits, together with tools for automated phase synthesis, classical verification, performance benchmarking, and validation on quantum hardware. It is based on a functional quantum linear and nonlinear library that combines multiple block-encoding methods with serial, parallel, distributed, robust, and generalized polynomial-transformation algorithms. This modular architecture differs from application-specific quantum software by allowing algorithms to be reconfigured as hardware capabilities, error-correction methods, and user requirements change. Users may benefit from reduced algorithm-development effort, easier integration with existing scientific software, more reliable performance comparisons, and a clearer pathway for applying fault-tolerant quantum computing to computationally demanding problems. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

NSF Program Director: Ruth Shuman