Preparations are under way for the new Amazon Web Services Center for Quantum Computing, scheduled to open in spring 2021.
The two-story, 21,000-square-foot facility will be located on South Holliston Avenue, adjacent to the Pasadena Fire Department station at Holliston and Del Mar Boulevard. Once open, the building will bring together leading researchers and engineers from Amazon, Caltech, and other academic institutions to accelerate advances in quantum computing technology.
Grading and leveling of the site are expected to begin this month, with foundation work to follow pending approval by the City of Pasadena. After the foundation is complete, construction of the building's steel frame will begin.
As always, the Institute will work to minimize disruption. Crews will follow city construction guidelines as well as COVID-19 safety protocols.
Caltech has a history of breakthroughs in experimental and theoretical quantum science and technology, and has become a leading incubator in the emerging field of quantum engineering, including quantum computing.
In December 2019, Amazon Web Services announced a partnership with Caltech to establish the AWS Center for Quantum Computing. Led by Oskar Painter (MS '95, PhD '01), the John G Braun Professor of Applied Physics and Physics, and Fernando Brandão, Bren Professor of Theoretical Physics, the center aims to develop more powerful quantum computing hardware and software, and to identify new applications for quantum technologies. Such technologies have the potential to drive transformative advances in areas such as data security, machine learning, medicine development, and sustainability.