Alice & Bob, a fault-tolerant quantum computing company, received $3.9 million from the U.S. Department of Energy’s ARPA-E Quantum Computing for Computational Chemistry program to develop quantum algorithms for discovering rare-earth-free permanent magnets. The project aims to accelerate material simulations and support energy transition technologies.
Quantum Computing for Materials Discovery
The initiative targets a 10,000-fold speed-up compared to classical simulations, enabling realistic material calculations within approximately one day. The approach combines classical computing with quantum algorithms to simulate complex electronic interactions and identify alternative magnetic materials for electric motors and turbines.
“Designing high-performance magnets without rare earth elements is one of the hardest problems in material science, as these materials are extremely difficult to simulate with classical computers. A hybrid approach – where classical methods compute environmental parameters and quantum computers simulate highly correlated electronic systems more accurately – could significantly accelerate the discovery of new magnetic materials.” said Juliette Peyronnet, U.S General Manager at Alice & Bob.
Collaborative Research Project
The three-year project includes collaboration with Los Alamos National Laboratory, GE Vernova’s Advanced Research accelerator and academic partners. The team will combine quantum algorithms, classical modeling and technoeconomic analysis to evaluate scalable material discovery methods.