Albany, N.y. May 23: University at Albany experts are available to discuss quantum computing following Thursday’s announcement that the U.S. Department of Commerce would award nearly $1.4 billion in grants to IBM and GlobalFoundries to expand quantum computing in the Albany area.
The landmark federal investments in quantum computing in the Capital Region underscore Albany’s long history and ongoing position at the center of technological innovation.
Quantum computing is an emerging field that harnesses the unique principles of quantum mechanics, such as superposition and entanglement, to perform multiple calculations at the same time, representing a dramatic increase in computing power with the potential to solve certain types of problems much faster than traditional computers.
UAlbany experts are available to discuss quantum computing, research underway at the University and in the region to advance and scale the technology, and its transformative potential to solve complex problems in medicine, health care, materials science, finance, logistics, cybersecurity, national security, artificial intelligence and other fields.
Spyros Gallis is an associate professor at UAlbany’s College of Nanotechnology, Science, and Engineering whose research focuses on scalable quantum technologies enabled by semiconductor fabrication and photonic integration. With prior experience at IBM’s semiconductor research and development center, his work advances room-temperature photonic quantum devices and scalable, industry-relevant manufacturing approaches.
“Quantum computing leverages the principles of quantum mechanics to solve problems beyond the reach of classical computers, particularly in areas such as materials discovery and optimization,” he said. “Investments from companies such as IBM and GlobalFoundries are critical to scaling these technologies into manufacturable systems, and photonic quantum devices will play a key role in enabling quantum networks that interconnect processors — an essential step toward practical, large-scale quantum computing and networking, including efforts underway in regions like New York’s growing semiconductor and quantum ecosystem.”
Walid Redjem, an assistant professor in the College of Nanotechnology, Science, and Engineering, is a researcher in silicon quantum photonics, a field that uses light and semiconductor chips to develop quantum technologies. His group studies how quantum states of light can be generated, controlled and measured using foundry-compatible fabrication, the same manufacturing approach used for modern integrated circuits. Redjem is available to discuss what the IBM and GlobalFoundries investment signals for quantum computing, why manufacturing is becoming central to the field, and how Albany’s semiconductor and photonics infrastructure could contribute to scalable quantum hardware.
“The investment highlights a shift in quantum computing from laboratory-scale demonstrations toward the manufacturing infrastructure needed to build reliable quantum hardware at scale,” he said. “For years, many quantum chips were fabricated in specialized research cleanrooms, with processes optimized for experiments rather than large-scale production. The next question is whether quantum hardware can move into the same kind of foundry environment used to manufacture advanced integrated circuits.”