{"id":75829,"date":"2025-09-24T10:49:01","date_gmt":"2025-09-24T17:49:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/?p=75829"},"modified":"2025-10-06T13:36:16","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T20:36:16","slug":"sparcqs-quantum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/sparcqs-quantum\/","title":{"rendered":"Sparking an interest in quantum science"},"content":{"rendered":"

Imagine a problem with 96 billion potential solutions.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To try them all would take a human, well, longer than forever. It would take a regular computer algorithm, checking 1 million possibilities a second, 24 hours.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It would take a quantum computer less than one second.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s how <\/span>In\u00e8s Monta\u00f1o<\/span><\/b> introduces the concept of quantum computing to young students and their parents when she travels the country with SparCQS (pronounced \u201csparks,\u201d short for Sparking Curiosity in Quantum Science). She uses a fun game called The Cat Challenge, where the participants try to match up cats on a 3×3 grid. It\u2019s an illuminating way to demonstrate the potential of quantum computers, which are computers that exploit the principles of quantum science to solve complex problems such as modeling climate change or finding a cure for cancer.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThese days we hear a lot about new technologies like quantum computers, which require us to not only understand the physical laws at the subatomic level but actually control subatomic particles,\u201d Monta\u00f1o said. \u201cWe are talking about new technologies that sound like science fiction and were completely unthinkable just a few years ago. They are very quickly becoming a reality, and with that we have workforce demands that we as a country are really not prepared to meet.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to her research on quantum science, Monta\u00f1o, a professor in the Department of Applied Physics and Materials Science, is actively involved in laying the foundation of the quantum-trained workforce needed to support these new technologies. In 2022, she started SparCQS as an effort to support the workforce development programming of the <\/span>Center for Quantum Networks<\/span><\/a>, an NSF-funded engineering research center. Fast forward to 2025, when SparCQS has grown to be an integral component of multiple NSF awards (<\/span>Center for Quantum Networks<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Expand QISE<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>\u00a1MIRA!-PREM<\/span><\/a>) and most recently <\/span>Elevate Quantum<\/span><\/a>. Elevate Quantum, a $127 million funded designated TechHub consortium sponsored by the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration and backed by more than 140 organizations including Microsoft, Google, AWS and others, aims to secure U.S. leadership in quantum technologies, which includes the ramp-up of the needed workforce.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"YoungThe goal of SparCQS is to educate the future workforce, starting really young, about quantum\u2014what it is, what it means and what they need to know to work in the field in the future. Quantum is already becoming a critical knowledge base for STEM jobs from entry level to advanced positions, and there are nowhere close to enough people with the quantum skillsets to do those jobs. As such, the need and avenues for the quantum workforce are not limited to becoming a quantum physicist but extend across science, technology, medicine, manufacturing, economics and education.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAll the quantum fields have the same problem: They\u2019re facing a future where they have a lot of jobs that they can\u2019t fill because people don\u2019t have the skills,\u201d Monta\u00f1o said.\u00a0 \u201cPeople are needed at every level, from technician to Ph.D.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n