PEPR Quantique: Young Researchers

Funding is available for projects led by young researchers at French institutions that focus on quantum technologies, with a particular focus on themes of national importance for France. 

Representing the upstream component of the French national acceleration strategy for quantum technologies and funded through the France 2030 investment plan, the Programme et Équipements Prioritaires de Recherche (PEPR – Priority Research Programme and Equipment) titled Quantique (Quantum) aims to support national academic research on quantum technologies, from basic research to the proof of concept stage (TRL 1-4). The PEPR is co-led by the CEA, the CNRS and Inria and has a total budget of €150 million over six years. Among its missions are the structuring and coordinating of communities across the programme’s four research areas:

• Robust solid state qubits for quantum computing.
• Cold atomic qubits for quantum simulation extended to quantum sensors.
• Quantum algorithms extended to post-quantum.
• Quantum communication and beyond.

The PEPR has launched and coordinated a range of scientific activities, including 10 targeted projects with themes and consortia identified to directly address major scientific and technological challenges for a rapid deployment of the relevant sectors for each of the four research areas, as well as two supplementary targeted projects related to photonics and electronics. It also funded eight projects from a call for proposals launched via ANR addressing the programme’s four key research areas. 

With the goals of supporting the structuring of scientific communities, providing a platform for young researchers and ensuring these researchers have the foundations to lead high-level teams, PEPR Quantique has launched a call for expressions of interest to support quantum projects led by young researchers. Supported projects must create a thematic connection with at least one targeted project from the PEPR. This may either mean creating a new branch on the same topic (exploring a variant, extension or application of the project’s main research topics) or extending a conceptual element of the project.