The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced $625 million in funding to renew its five National Quantum Information Science (QIS) Research Centers. These centers were originally established following the National Quantum Initiative Act, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump in December 2018.
According to the DOE, this renewal is part of a broader effort to align quantum research with national priorities and to strengthen American leadership in quantum science and technology. The department states that it will focus resources on advancing critical research and development across the QIS field, supporting innovation, accelerating discoveries for next-generation technologies, and maintaining leadership in quantum computing, hardware, and applications.
U.S. Department of Energy Under Secretary for Science Darío Gil said, “President Trump positioned America to lead the world in quantum science and technology and today, a new frontier of scientific discovery lies before us. Breakthroughs in QIS have the potential to revolutionize the ways we sense, communicate, and compute, sparking entirely new technologies and industries. The renewal of DOE’s National Quantum Information Science Research Centers will empower America to secure our advantage in pioneering the next generation of scientific and engineering advancements needed for this technology.”
Each National Quantum Information Science Research Center supports fundamental science with potential impact across quantum computing, simulation, networking, and sensing; develops specialized tools and instrumentation; advances technology through application to pressing scientific and national security challenges; and builds community resources as well as industry partnerships.
The renewed centers include:
– Co-design Center for Quantum Advantage (C2QA) at Brookhaven National Laboratory: This center focuses on improving materials used in superconducting and diamond-based quantum devices while developing modular approaches for different systems.
– Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Center (SQMS) at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory: It works on scaling quantum devices using superconducting microwave cavities and creating new refrigeration methods.
– Q-NEXT at Argonne National Laboratory: The center aims to advance algorithms and chip components for scalable quantum operations.
– Quantum Systems Accelerator (QSA) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory: Its goal is to enable large-scale quantum computers by improving error correction techniques.
– Quantum Science Center (QSC) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory: This center pioneers high-performance computing accelerated by quantum technologies.
The awards were chosen through competitive peer review under the DOE’s National Laboratory Program Announcement for these research centers. Funding totals $625 million over up to five years. For Fiscal Year 2025 alone, $125 million is allocated; further funding depends on congressional appropriations.
A full list of awards as well as additional information can be found on the QIS initiative homepage. More details about each center are available at NQISRC.org.
DOE noted that selection for award negotiations does not guarantee an award or funding; both parties must complete a negotiation process before funds are issued.
