Research

Research Priorities: quantum information theory, quantum optics, physics of many-particle systems, atomic physics

Juan Ignacio Cirac is a Spanish physicist. He developed methods to describe and control the world of atoms, molecules, and photons with the laws of quantum mechanics.

Some of Juan Ignacio Cirac's work describes how quantum mechanical properties can be used safely and efficiently for the transmission and storage of information. This is a prerequisite for the development of quantum computers, with which computing operations would be performed much faster than before. Thus, quantum computers could simplify the research in databases and revolutionize the security of data transmission.

Juan Ignacio Cirac developed concepts like quantum repeaters, calculations by dissipation, as well as quantum networks and quantum logic gates that are based on collisions. He further contributed to development of an information theory that is based on quantum mechanics.

Juan Ignacio Cirac and his research team also developed methods to cool down atoms or to polarise nuclear spins in quantum dots with which to utilize their quantum behaviour. With that, they created new theoretical tools to characterize and quantify entanglement, which is an important property in quantum mechanics that is the foundation for most phenomena and applications. With this technology, they researched methods with which many-particle systems can be described in new ways. These methods not only provided immensely capable numeric algorithms for the study of quantum systems, but they can also be applied to other areas of physics.

Career

• 2022-2023 Executive Director, Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Garching, Germany
• 2018 Hanna Visiting Professor, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
• 2015 Distinguished Visiting Professor, Institute for Theoretical Physics, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
• 2014-2015 Executive Director, Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Garching, Germany
• 2005-2007 Executive Director, Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Garching, Germany
• since 2002 Honorary Professor, Department of Physics, Technische Universität (TU) München, Munich, Germany
• since 2001 Director, Department Theory, Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Garching, Germany
• 1996-2001 Professor, Institute of Theoretical Physics, Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
• 1993-1994 Research Associate, Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, USA
• 1991-1996 Professor, Section of Applied Physics, Universitad de Castilla-La Mancha, Ciudad Real, Spain
• 1991 PhD in Physics, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
• 1989-1991 Fellow, Section of Optics, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
• 1988 Degree in Theoretical Physics, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Functions

• since 2021 Member, International Advisory Committee, Grant Extreme Universe, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan and Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan
• since 2020 Member, Scientific Committee, Fundació LA CAIXA, Valencia, Spain
• since 2020 Member, Scientific Advisory Board, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
• since 2020 Member, Scientific Advisory Board, Institute of Atomic and Molecular Sciences (IAMS), Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
• since 2019 Co-Sprecher, Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST), Munich, Germany
• 2016-2020 Member, Advisory Board, Fundació LA CAIXA, Valencia, Spain
• since 2016 Spokesperson, International Max Planck Research School Quantum Science and Technology, Munich, Germany
• since 2015 Member, Advisory Board, Institute for Interdisciplinary Information Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
• since 2012 Member, Advisory Board, Russian Quantum Center, Moscow, Russia
• since 2012 Member, Advisory Board, Annalen der Physik
• since 2012 Chair, Scientific Advisory Board, ICFO – The Institute of Photonic Sciences, Barcelona, Spain
• since 2011 Member, Review Panel, Quantumscience and Technology (QSIT), Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF), Switzerland
• since 2010 Member, Scientific Committee der Fundación, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) Frontiers of Knowledge, Bilbao, Spain
• since 2008 Member, Advisory Board, Centro de Ciencias de Benasque, Benasque, Spain
• 2007-2009 Member, xQIT Visiting Committee, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, USA
• 2007-2008 Member, CIAR Review Panel, Toronto, Canada
• since 2007 Member, Scientific Advisory Board, Centre of Quantum Technology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
• 2007-2010 Member, Advisory Board, Institute for Theoretical Atomic Molecular and Optical Physic (ITAMP), Harvard University, Cambridge, USA
• 2005-2011 Associate Editor, Review of Modern Physics
• 2005-2008 Member, International Advisory Board, Quantum Information Processing Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration (QIP IRC), Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, Swindon, UK
• 2005-2008 Member, Curatorium, Institute of Quantum Optics and Quantum Information (IQOQI), Austrian Academy of Science, Innsbruck, Austria
• 2005-2007 Executive Director, Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics, Garching, Germany
• 2002-2005 Associate Editor, Revista Española de Física
• since 2001 Founding Managing Editor, Quantum Information and Computation
• 2000-2003 Associate Editor, Physical Review A

Projects

• since 2019 Spokesperson, Clusters of Excellence (EXC) “Munich Center for Quantum Science and Technology (MCQST)“, German Research Council (DFG), Munich, Germany
• since 2019 Applicant, Project “Quantum Information Protocols with limited resources“, DFG
• 2007-2015 Head, Subproject “Nuclear Spins in Quantum Dots“, Collaborative Research Centres (SFB) 631, DFG, Germany
• 2006-2019 Participating Researcher, EXC “Nanosystems Initiative Munich (NIM)“, DFG, Germany
• 2006-2013 Applicant, Research Unit (FOR) “Quantum Simulations with Quantum Optical Systems“, DFG, Germany
• 2003-2011 Head, Subproject “Theory of Many-particle Entanglement and its Application in Solid-State Systems“, SFB 631, DFG, Germany
• 2003-2005 Applicant, Project “Theoretical and experimental research on the transmission of information through quantum channels operations “, DFG, Germany

Honours and Memberships

• 2021 Falling Walls Breakthrough Award in Physical Sciences, Falling Walls Foundation, Berlin, Germany
• 2020 Honorary Member, Col·legi d’Economistes de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
• 2020 Member, Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW), Munich, Germany
• 2019 Honorary Doctorate, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
• 2019 Micius Quantum Prize (together with Peter Zoller), Micius Quantum Foundation, Shanghai, China
• 2019 John Stuart Bell Prize, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
• 2017 Max Planck Medal, German Physical Society (DPG), Germany
• since 2017 Member, National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, Germany
• 2017 Gran Gresol Prize, Fundació Gresol, Reus, Spain
• since 2016 Member, Real Academia de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales de España (RAC), Spain
• 2016 Honorary Doctorate, Universidad Europea, Madrid, Spain
• 2016 Profesor Distinguido, Institute of Mathematical Sciences (ICMAT), Madrid, Spain
• 2015 Honorary Medal, Garcia Cabrerizo Foundation, Madrid, Spain
• 2015 Hamburg Prize for Theoretical Physics, Joachim Herz-Stiftung, Hamburg, Germany
• 2015 Honorary Doctorate, Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, Spain
• since 2015 Corresponding Member, Real Academia de Ciencias de Zaragoza, Saragossa, Spain
• 2015 Honorary Doctorate, Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain
• since 2014 Honorary Member, Spanish Optical Society (SEDOPTICA), Spain
• 2014 Honorary Doctorate, Universidad de Zaragoza, Saragossa, Spain
• 2014 Visiting Miller Professorship Award, University of California (UC) Berkeley, Berkeley, USA
• since 2013 Corresponding Member, Academia de Ciencias y Artes, Barcelona, Spain
• 2013 Wolf-Prize, Wolf Foundation, Herzlia Pituach, Israel
• 2013 Honorary Medal, Niels-Bohr Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark
• 2013 David Ben Gurion-Medaille, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, Israel
• 2011 Gran Cruz de la Orden del Dos de Mayo de la Comunidad de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
• 2010 Premi Nacional de Pensament i Cultura Científica, Government of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain
• 2010 Benjamin Franklin Medal, Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, USA
• 2009 Honorary Medal, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
• 2009 Distinguished Research Chair, Perimeter Institute, Waterloo, Canada
• 2009 Carl-Zeiss-Humboldt Research Award, Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung, Stuttgart, Germany
• 2008 BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award for Basic Science, BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge, Bilbao, Spain
• 2007 Honorary Scientific Member, Academia de Ciencias de la Región de Murcia, Murcia, Spain
• 2007 National Blas Cabrera Prize for Physical, Material and Earth Sciences, Premio Nacional, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Spain
• 2007 Honorary Doctorate, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya BarcelonaTech (UPC), Barcelona, Spain
• 2006 6th International Quantum Communication Award, Tamagawa Academy (K-12) Tamagawa University, Tokyo, Japan
• 2006 Prince of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research, The Princess of Asturias Foundation, Madrid, Spain
• 2005 Honorary Doctorate, Universidad Castilla-La Mancha, Ciudad Real, Spain
• 2005 Quantum Electronics Prize, European Physical Society (EPS)
• since 2003 Corresponding Member, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria
• since 2002 Corresponding Member Member, Real Academia de Ciencias, Madrid, Spain
• 2002 Medalla de la RSEF, Real Sociedad Española de Física, Madrid, Spain
• since 2002 Member, American Physical Society, USA
• 2001 Felix-Kuschenitz Price, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria
• 1992 Premio Nacional a Investigadores Noveles, Real Sociedad Española de Física, Madrid, Spain