Abstract: Trapped ions provide a highly desirable physical substrate on which to construct a scalable quantum computer. All qubits are exactly identical by nature, can be well isolated from the environment to establish long coherence times, and high fidelity quantum logic gates have been readily available. The long-range Coulomb interactions among the ions used for multi-qubit gates in a chain allows for highly connected network of qubits that are fully programmable, opening up opportunities for advanced and flexible quantum computer architectures. Some of the most advanced and complex quantum algorithms have been implemented in trapped ion systems leveraging these features. In this presentation, I will summarize the state-of-the-art systems used to implement quantum computing applications in the laboratories today, and also outline system design approach currently undertaken to improve the stability, reliability, and programmability of trapped ion quantum computers. Then, I will discuss the opportunities and challenges ahead for reaching a scalable quantum computer capable of executing useful tasks.

Short Bio: Jungsang Kim is a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Physics and Computer Science at Duke University, and leads the Multifunctional Integrated Systems Technology group. His main area of current research is quantum information sciences, where his group uses trapped atomic ions and a range of photonics technologies in an effort to construct a scalable quantum information processors and quantum communication networks. He leads multi-institutional collaboration in developing a quantum computer system capable of implementing quantum error correction. He is a co-founder and a Chief Strategy Officer at IonQ, a startup company commercializing trapped ion quantum computers. Jungsang Kim received his B.S. in Physics from Seoul National University in Korea (1992), and his Ph.D. also in Physics from Stanford University (1999).