How Quantum Circuits Changed Physics | 2025 Nobel Laureates at APS

Описание: APS TV is proud to present an in-depth conversation with the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics laureates—John M. Martinis, John Clarke, and Michel H. Devoret—recorded at the APS Global Physics Summit.

Their pioneering experiments showed that entire electrical circuits—macroscopic systems containing billions of electrons—can obey the laws of quantum mechanics. By demonstrating quantum behavior in superconducting circuits, their work transformed fundamental physics and laid the foundation for today’s rapidly advancing field of quantum computing, where engineered quantum systems can be designed, controlled, and scaled.

In this conversation, the laureates reflect on the early days of the field in the 1980s: the bold proposal to test whether macroscopic variables could behave quantum mechanically, the technical challenges of building ultra-low-noise experiments at millikelvin temperatures, and the moment when quantized energy levels were first observed in systems far larger than atoms. What began as a fundamental exploration of quantum mechanics has since grown into a global research effort driving new technologies and discoveries.

Just as central as the science itself is the story of collaboration and community. Martinis, Clarke, and Devoret emphasize how progress emerged from decades of contributions by researchers across disciplines and around the world—an example of how major breakthroughs in physics are built through shared ideas, mentorship, and persistence.

That spirit is at the heart of the APS Global Physics Summit, where physicists from across the international community gather to exchange ideas and shape the future of the field. This conversation offers a rare opportunity to hear directly from the scientists whose work helped launch the era of quantum circuits and quantum computing, and whose discoveries continue to influence the next generation of research and technology.