Hanneke Weitering is a writer and editor with AIN covering advanced air mobility and new flight technologies. She became an aviation journalist and joined the AIN team in the summer of 2022 after reporting on spaceflight and astronomy for six years at Space.com. After earning a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, she moved to New York City to pursue a master’s degree in science, health, and environmental reporting at New York University&#039;s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. She is now based in Seattle near Boeing Field and spends her free time exploring nature in the Pacific Northwest.

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Hanneke Weitering

Thales is teaming up with quantum computing company Alice &amp; Bob and the French research institute Inria to develop quantum algorithms that could drastically speed up simulations of aerospace equipment such as radar or telecommunications antennas.&nbsp;
Funding for the €2.6 million ($2.9 million) technology demonstration project comes from the i-Démo Régionalisé program, which is part of the €54 billion France 2030 investment plan that the French government launched in 2021 to spur innovation and economic growth. Quantum computing is one example of a budding industry in which France hopes to gain a competitive edge.
“The pursuit of this project demonstrates that our organizations are committed to being world leaders in quantum computing and understand how to do it,” said Alice &amp; Bob CEO Théau Peronnin. “By sponsoring the development of fault-tolerant quantum computers with high-quality qubits, France will position itself to reap the first fruits of quantum tech.”
Quantum computers have the potential to perform complex calculations exponentially faster than conventional or “classical” computers. For the aerospace industry, that means product developers can use quantum computing to perform significantly more robust and complicated simulations that would take a classical computer an unreasonable amount of processing time.
“An exponential speed-up means not just that simulations can be run faster, but that simulations that would have taken more than the age of universe become feasible,” Elie Gouzien, lead scientist for quantum algorithms at Alice &amp; Bob, told AIN. “Massively speeding up the development process, especially when the simulations are precise enough to make prototypes irrelevant, allows [product developers] to test way more designs and hence achieve a better one.”
Although some small-scale quantum computers already exist, the technology is still very much in its infancy and is mainly limited to experimental use at laboratories and research institutions. With some technical challenges left to overcome, quantum computers have yet to scale into a practical and commercially viable product—something Thales and Alice &amp; Bob hope to change.
To evaluate whether quantum computing can effectively accelerate electromagnetic simulations for aerospace telecommunications equipment, the Thales-led team will compare simulation results with real-world data from actual airborne equipment.&nbsp;
Inria, the French national institute for research in digital science and technology, is developing the programming language and compilation tools for the quantum algorithms that will govern the simulations. Alice &amp; Bob will design the quantum processing unit (QPU) architecture necessary to run those algorithms on a fault-tolerant quantum computer. Thales will be responsible for defining use cases for the quantum algorithms, testing their performance, and benchmarking the results against real-world test data.
<h2>Correcting Quantum Errors</h2>
Fault-tolerant quantum computers represent “the new generation of error-resilient quantum computers,” according to Alice &amp; Bob, because they offer a solution to what is perhaps the biggest problem in quantum computing today: it is susceptible to errors. This is due to the inherent fragility of quantum states and the sensitivity of qubits to environmental disturbances like noise, light, or temperature fluctuations.&nbsp;
Whereas conventional computers process data in the form of binary digits (bits) that can only exist in one of two states (0 or 1), quantum computers use quantum bits (qubits) that exist in both states simultaneously, thanks to the quantum physics principle of superposition. Environmental interactions can cause qubits to randomly change states, thereby losing encoded information in a process called decoherence.
One way to deal with decoherence is to implement quantum error correction coding into the program software to track errors as they happen and retrieve the missing information via redundant qubits. At Alice &amp; Bob, computer scientists have discovered a way to correct errors before they happen, thereby reducing the need for redundant hardware. The company refers to the solution as “cat qubits”—a tribute to&nbsp;Schrödinger’s cat.
“Achieving the first error-corrected processor, known as a logical qubit, is the most important step toward building a fault-tolerant quantum computer,” a company spokesman told AIN. He said Alice &amp; Bob&nbsp;expects to produce a logical qubit with Helium 1 by the end of 2025.
Based in Paris and Boston, Alice &amp; Bob is one of several tech start-ups vying to create the world’s first universal fault-tolerant quantum computers, which it hopes to make commercially available in the mid-2030s.&nbsp;The company already has several quantum computers in its laboratory, and it is currently testing quantum error correction techniques on its largest quantum processor, called Helium 1.
Because fault-tolerant quantum computers do not exist yet, “there is no plan to execute the algorithm at scale during the Aerocat project,” Gouzien said. “Our focus will be on developing the algorithm, designing the QPU architecture capable of running it, and estimating the necessary resources (e.g., the number of qubits, runtime) required to achieve a clear quantum advantage. However, we will eventually reach a point where such algorithms can be executed. The question of how to verify results from a quantum computer is crucial and represents a research field in itself.”
<h2>Quantum Sensors</h2>
At Thales, computer scientists and engineers are looking into just about every facet of quantum technology and its potential applications. Quantum sensors and communications systems are two examples of applications that could most benefit the aviation industry.
Quantum sensors can theoretically measure physical qualities with more precision and sensitivity than traditional types of sensors while requiring less power, and the equipment can be miniaturized to reduce weight.
Thales is developing a variety of quantum sensors and the core technologies that make them possible. For example, it is studying superconducting quantum interference devices that could be used to build tiny communications antennas.
“Low-frequency antennas that take up several square meters today will fit in the palm of your hand,” said Marko Erman, senior v-p and chief scientific officer at Thales. “Quantum inertial navigation systems will be 100 times more accurate than today’s laser gyro system, offering high precision navigation in any situation even without a GPS signal.”
As a defense contractor, Thales is also exploring military applications for quantum computers. For example, a quantum computer could remotely operate a large fleet of reconnaissance drones across numerous sites, according to Thales.
For telecommunications systems, quantum cryptography can offer unparalleled data security. “Ultra-secure quantum communication will be the ultimate defense against cybercrime,” said Erman, “but the holy grail of quantum communication will be the ability to interconnect quantum objects like quantum computers and quantum sensors.”

News and developments about everything that goes into the cabin of an aircraft, from floor coverings to headliners, with a special emphasis on in-flight entertainment, communications and other electronics for passengers. If it is in the cabin of an aircraft, it’s covered here.

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