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Scientist

Ignacio Cirac

1965– · Quantum information, Quantum optics, Quantum computing
Spanish theoretical physicist, pioneer of quantum computing and quantum information. Together with Peter Zoller, he developed a scheme for a quantum computer based on trapped ions. He proposed the concepts of quantum repeaters for long-distance quantum communication and methods of quantum simulation. Director of the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics.

Biography

He studied at the Complutense University of Madrid. He worked at the University of Castilla-La Mancha, the University of Innsbruck, and since 2001 has headed a department at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching. Winner of the Wolf Prize (2013), the Prince of Asturias Award (2006), and many others.

Key discoveries

💡 Cirac is known for his modesty: after receiving the Wolf Prize, he said that the main reward is the opportunity to work on what you love. He also actively popularizes science in Spanish-speaking countries.
"He said that quantum mechanics teaches us that information is physical, and we are only beginning to realize the consequences of this."
Concepts
quantum algorithmquantum entanglement
Laws
no-cloning theorem
Scientists
Alain AspectErwin SchrödingerDavid DeutschJohn Stewart BellNiels BohrDavid BohmCharles BennettJohn Clauser

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