It will be possible to study quantum informatics at the Czech Technical university (CTU)

Quantum Informatics is a new Master's degree program that will be offered to students of the CTU in Prague from the academic year 2024/25. It is a joint venture on behalf of the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering (FNSPE), the Faculty of Information Technology (FIT), the Faculty of Electrical Engineering (FEE) and the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering (FME). It is an all-school Master's program focused on the latest trends in informatics. Quantum communication and cryptography laboratories and a quantum computing laboratory will also be built to provide teaching facilities. Teaching will be conducted in both Czech and English.

"Quantum computing is one of the most commercially sought-after quantum technologies, with huge investments being made around the world. At the same time, there are still very few experts and practically anyone who has at least a minimal understanding of quantum computing is guaranteed job offers," explains Prof. Igor Jex from the Department of Physics at FNSPE. He is behind the creation of the new program as one of the world's leading experts in the field of quantum technologies. "The Master's degree program is being prepared with a vision of the future, where quantum technologies clearly belong. It will prepare experts in the field of quantum informatics to know and to effectively use these promising technologies, which radically change computing procedures and communication in the field of information processing," adds the Dean of FIT CTU doc. Marcel Jiřina.

In addition to FJFI, the study program will be primarily provided by FIT and then by FEE and FME, which will supply the complementary competences needed to implement and develop the program. The emphasis is on the computer science and engineering aspects of quantum computing. A Quantum Computing Laboratory will be established at FIT – a new classroom with an optical quantum computer simulator. The faculty will develop quantum informatics, especially focusing on quantum algorithms for parallelization of computation, cryptography/encryption, security algorithms, complexity theory, and data mining (learning parallel structures – deep learning networks).

FEE and FNSPE will jointly create a teaching Laboratory of Quantum Cryptography and ensure its subsequent connection to the Czech National Quantum Infrastructure. The project will also serve to prepare study programs/specializations at other CTU faculties (apart from FNSPE and FEE, especially FIT and FME). The Laboratory will also actively participate in the emerging international consortium for quantum technologies.

"Quantum computing with order-of-magnitude acceleration of computation will advance the whole of engineering. The development of products for all industry will be accelerated and their quality improved by processing more design variants, the quality and optimality of machine and process control will increase by the possible complexity of simulation models for predicting their behavior, and the growth in the volume of processed data from measurements of their behavior gives hope of gaining better knowledge for their new designs," predicts Prof. Michael Valášek from the FME Institute of Mechanics, Biomechanics and Mechatronics.

"The emergence of this field gives us hope that the Czech Republic will play an important role in the field of quantum computing, from which the world expects a revolution in secure communication and an order of magnitude shift in computing power. The mastery of quantum computers will give us a tool that will enable an order of magnitude leap in all areas where large volumes of data need to be processed, which, in practical terms, include all scientific fields. It will also allow us to look at old problems in a new way and gradually discover a whole new world of algorithms and computer science procedures," concludes Prof. Igor Jex.

For several years now, it has been possible to study both the Bachelor's and Master's degree programs in Quantum Technologies at FJFI. The faculty is also very active in engaging in international projects in this field. It cooperates in the educational part of the European Quantum Flagship project called QTEdu Open Master. Following this, it will participate in another European project, DigiQ, which is jointly implemented by 24 major European universities. Together, these activities contribute to the further expansion of the offer and quality of education at CTU and its internationalization.