Energy Department funding extends UIC, Fermilab partnership

Quantum information science is booming in Chicago. At UIC, coursework, clubs and collaborative research connect students with this cutting-edge technology.   

Thanks to a $125 million grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science to the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, UIC’s relationship to quantum will continue to expand. The DOE renewed funding for the laboratory’s Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Center, with which UIC is a partner. 

“Chicago is establishing itself as a hub for quantum innovation. UIC’s partnership with Fermi cements our involvement in that,” said Robert Klie, a UIC physics professor and department head who has collaborated with scientists at Fermilab since 2010. 

Quantum information science can enhance high-speed computing, cybersecurity and ultra-precise biomedical sensing for early disease detection. Klie said part of the funding renewal will support his cryo-microscopy research at UIC, which examines the structure and chemistry of the smallest quantum computing devices, called qubits, with atomic-resolution electron microscopes.

The SQMS Center will develop qubits based on niobium, a metal that becomes a superconductor when frozen at extremely low temperatures. 

“My group has been pioneering cryo-microscopy methods for chemical compounds containing oxygen, or oxides,” Klie said. “Working with the center, we’ll use those methods to develop and understand next-generation quantum computers and sensors.”.  

Kassandra Weber, a fourth-year graduate physics student in Klie’s lab, said the partnership with the SQMS Center bridges the gap between theory and application for her quantum information science research.  

“This benefits me as a researcher by allowing me the privilege of learning from industry leaders, opening up opportunities to collaborate with researchers across all disciplines and giving me access to the burgeoning quantum community in the greater Chicago area,” she said. 

Thomas Searles, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at UIC, also spearheads collaborative research with the SQMS Center. In 2023, his lab group began using the SQMS Center’s Quantum Garage, a cutting-edge research facility dedicated to collaborative discovery and quantum education. 

“Continuing to partner with Fermilab’s quantum research center brings top-tier expertise, resources and capabilities to UIC. It supports students as they learn, collaborate and present their own research in a professional environment,” he said.

Evan Reeves, a third-year PhD student in electrical and computer engineering in Searles’s lab, will continue his ongoing work in the Quantum Garage. 

“The fact that I can say I am one of the few people on the planet to have worked hands-on with a real, physical quantum computer right in front of me still blows my mind,” he said. 

Fellow lab member Sangita Regmi, also an electrical and computer engineering PhD candidate, said quantum information science is a field “at the forefront of modern technology.” 

“The partnership provides access to cutting-edge research facilities, mentorship from leading scientists and opportunities to contribute to real-world quantum technologies,” Regmi said. “Through this collaboration, I gain hands-on experience with state-of-the-art quantum hardware and computational tools. This environment strengthens my research skills and prepares me to contribute meaningfully to the growing field of quantum technology.”

The federal award, which totaled $625 million, renewed all five National Quantum Information Science Research Centers. In addition to the SQMC Center, UIC partners with the Co-design Center for Quantum Advantage at Brookhaven National Laboratory.