The Austrian Science Fund (FWF) approved the Cluster of Excellence “Quantum Science Austria” (quantA) on March 13, 2023, as part of the excellent=austria initiative. According to the University of Vienna, the FWF and participating research institutions committed a funding volume of €35 million over five years, with a planned total duration of ten years.
quantA brings together over 60 research groups from six institutions across Innsbruck, Vienna, Linz, and Klosterneuburg: the University of Innsbruck, the University of Vienna, Vienna University of Technology, Johannes Kepler University Linz, the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IQOQI Vienna and Innsbruck), and the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA). Gregor Weihs of the University of Innsbruck serves as Director of Research.
Research within the cluster covers the quantum foundations of space, time, and gravity; new paradigms in quantum information science; and the physics of engineered quantum many-body systems. Alongside its research mission, quantA includes a training program for young researchers from MSc to senior postdoc level and a communication and outreach program engaging Austrian society and industry.