By Andrea Morello, UNSW Sydney Quantum entanglement — once dismissed by Albert Einstein as “spooky action at a distance” — has long captured the public imagination and puzzled even seasoned scientists. But for today’s quantum practitioners, the reality is rather more mundane: entanglement is a kind of connection between particles that is the quintessential feature…
Forget everything you thought you knew about keeping time – University of Adelaide scientists have built quantum clocks so accurate they make GPS look like a sundial in a thunderstorm. These cutting-edge optical quantum clocks have been proven to outperform GPS navigation systems by many orders of magnitude during real-world naval exercises in Hawaii, marking…
By Ivan Kassal, University of Sydney and Tingrei Tan, University of Sydney When a molecule absorbs light, it undergoes a whirlwind of quantum-mechanical transformations. Electrons jump between energy levels, atoms vibrate, and chemical bonds shift — all within millionths of a billionth of a second. These processes underpin everything from photosynthesis in plants and DNA…
Swinburne researchers have stumbled upon strange new quantum behaviours that exist only in one-dimensional systems, potentially revolutionising our understanding of how materials conduct electricity, emit light, and respond to external forces. The discovery focuses on what happens when a single “impurity” particle – like an uninvited guest at a party of identical particles – is…
A new quantum research initiative led by the Defence Science and Technology Group aims to protect Australian military operations when GPS is compromised, according to a statement released by Defence on Monday. The project, funded by the Australian Army, will focus on developing a ground-to-satellite optical quantum link to enable secure and precise time synchronisation…
Khuda foundation donates $100 million for girls in STEM A donation of $100 million from the Khuda Family Foundation will fund a 20-year program to create a pathway for girls from Western Sydney to pursue STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education and careers. The University of Sydney said in a statement on Wednesday that…
Quantum technologies – which may soon provide huge advances in computing, communication and sensing – are rapidly growing in strategic importance.
The Australian Institute of Physics (AIP) has invited Australians to join in recognising quantum, a branch of science which “seems mysterious” but underpins much of modern life. The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2025 as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology on June 7, chosen due to the century anniversary “since the initial…
The federal government has called for applications from industry-research teams for the new $36 million Critical Technologies Challenge Program, aiming to “capture the power and potential of quantum technologies to address nationally significant challenges”. In a statement from industry minister Ed Husic on Wednesday, it was said that the program will speed up commercialisation for…
By Timothy Duignan, Griffith University The Australian government is going all in on quantum computing. After investing more than $100 million on “quantum technology” in 2021, it is now reportedly considering spending up to $200 million on purchasing a “quantum computer” from a US company. Is this a sensible decision? You might think so, if…