IBM and SPIE, the International Society for Optics and Photonics, have jointly presented a $100,000 annual award to promote research and education in quantum optics and photonics. The award, known as the IBM-SPIE HBCU Faculty Accelerator Award, is aimed at member institutions of the IBM-HBCU Quantum Center. The initiative seeks to leverage diversity in advancing quantum technologies, acknowledging the importance of including diverse student bodies from America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The 2023 award has been given to a group of researchers and educators at Tuskegee University, including Akshaya Kumar, Dimitar Dimitrov, Fan Wu, and S. Keith Hargrove.
HBCU + Quantum
Emphasizing Diversity in Quantum Technologies
Recognizing the disparities in previous technology nodes and supporting workforce developments, SPIE and IBM are collaborating to ensure future technologies benefit from the qualities and experiences of a diverse community. They believe that quantum photonics and related technologies, which are expected to lead future technology advancements and economies, will have a stronger impact with the inclusion of ideas and work from diverse student bodies at America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The goal is to create an open, diverse, and inclusive quantum future.
Award Details and Application Requirements
The IBM-SPIE HBCU Faculty Accelerator Award in Quantum Optics and Photonics offers up to $100,000 in research funding. The award can be used to support students or postdoc researcher stipends, travel, conference registration, equipment, materials and supplies, and faculty summer salary. The application process requires a cover letter, a written research proposal, a supplemental budget and budget justification, and CVs of all members of the proposing team. The research team must be affiliated with an IBM-HBCU Quantum Center member institution.
Selection Criteria for the Award
All proposals for the IBM-SPIE HBCU Faculty Accelerator Award in Quantum Optics and Photonics will be reviewed by SPIE and IBM Quantum. The selection criteria emphasize the scientific and community impact of the proposal, including the advancement of quantum optics and photonics research or education, the rationale and plan for proposed activities, the engagement of students in proposal activities and research, and the broader impact of the project on the Black community and the IBM-HBCU Quantum Center.
2023 Award Recipient
The 2023 IBM-SPIE HBCU Faculty Accelerator Award in Quantum Optics and Photonics has been awarded to a group of researchers and educators at Tuskegee University. The group includes the head of the university’s physics department Akshaya Kumar; Dimitar Dimitrov, a physicist and committed student mentor; Fan Wu, who provides advanced computational tools for the research group’s students; and S. Keith Hargrove, a scientist, industry-alliance expert, and the university’s provost and senior vice president for academic affairs.
Quantum photonics and its related technologies will be at the forefront of technology advancements and the economies of the future. SPIE and IBM believe the impact of these technologies will be stronger with the inclusion of the ideas and work of the diverse student-bodies found at America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Together, IBM and SPIE are working to help create an open, diverse, and inclusive quantum future.
Summary
The IBM-HBCU Quantum Centre and SPIE, an international society for optics and photonics, have launched a $100,000 annual award to support research and education in quantum optics and photonics at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the US. The initiative aims to foster diversity in the field of quantum technologies, with the belief that the impact of these technologies will be stronger with the inclusion of diverse ideas and work.
- IBM-HBCU Quantum Center and SPIE, the International Society for Optics and Photonics, have jointly presented the IBM-SPIE HBCU Faculty Accelerator Award in Quantum Optics and Photonics.
- The annual award, worth $100,000, aims to support and promote research and education in quantum optics and photonics within IBM-HBCU Quantum Center member institutions.
- The initiative is part of a broader effort by IBM and SPIE to leverage diversity in advancing quantum technologies, acknowledging past inequities in technology sectors.
- The award is intended to foster an open, diverse, and inclusive quantum future, with a particular focus on engaging the diverse student bodies at America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
- The award money can be used to support students or postdoc researcher stipends, travel, conference registration, equipment, materials and supplies, and faculty summer salary.
- The 2023 award has been granted to a group of researchers and educators at Tuskegee University, including Akshaya Kumar, Dimitar Dimitrov, Fan Wu, and S. Keith Hargrove.
