Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis QUANTUM-NANO CENTRE

UN

IVE

RSIT

Y O

F W

AT

ER

LOO

| Fro

m th

e Presid

ent

From the President

Waterloo was built to do things differently.

With the Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis

Quantum-Nano Centre, we’re doing it again.

The most scientifically sophisticated building ever

constructed at the University of Waterloo, this

one-of-a-kind centre will facilitate transformational

research with applications spanning computing,

communications, medicine and beyond.

Shared by the Institute for Quantum Computing

(IQC) and the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology

(WIN), this building provides our researchers with the

tools and opportunities to unlock the amazing power

of quantum information science and the boundless

potential of nanotechnology. The groundbreaking

discoveries that happen here will continue Waterloo’s

long tradition of research excellence and innovation

through the 21st century.

I warmly invite you to explore this scientific and

architectural marvel for yourself.

FERIDUN HAMDULLAHPUR

President and Vice-Chancellor

University of Waterloo

1

Mike &

Ophelia Lazaridis

QU

AN

TU

M-N

AN

O C

EN

TR

E

“The opening of the Mike &

Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-

Nano Centre will enable leading-

edge, multidisciplinary research

through the collaboration of

nanotechnology and quantum

experts working side by side.”

PEARL SULLIVAN, Dean, Faculty of Engineering

The Mike & Ophelia LazaridisQuantum-Nano Centre

UN

IVE

RSIT

Y O

F W

AT

ER

LOO

| Th

e Mike &

Op

helia L

azaridis Q

uantum-N

ano C

entre

Two world-class institutes.

One state-of-the-art building.

Opened in September 2012, this remarkable building at the University of

Waterloo is a hub of cutting-edge research into quantum information science

and nanotechnology. A state-of-the-art research centre and an architectural

marvel, the building will attract the world’s brightest researchers and enable

breakthroughs that will change the world.

QUICK FACTS

» 285,000 square feet, shared between the Institute for Quantum Computing and the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology

» Meets highest scientific standards for control of vibration, electromagnetic radiation, temperature, and humidity

» Cleanroom/fabrication facility enables design of structures that are billionths of a metre in size

» Six-storey atrium with floating staircase provides common ground for scientists of all disciplines to meet and collaborate

» A state-of-the-art building at the heart of campus, designed by award-winning Canadian firm KPMB Architects

» Vertical windows of varying reflectivity and transparency on the IQC side, metaphorically signify quantum superposition; honeycomb steel lattice on the WIN side represents graphene, a building block of nanotechnology

3

Mike &

Ophelia Lazaridis

QU

AN

TU

M-N

AN

O C

EN

TR

E

UN

IVE

RSIT

Y O

F W

AT

ER

LOO

| Th

e Institu

te for Q

uantum C

om

puting

The Institute for Quantum Computing

Raymond Laflamme

Executive Director

Institute for Quantum Computing

5

“The ground-breaking work

that will take place in the Mike

& Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-

Nano Centre builds on a long

tradition of excellence in

computing innovation at

the University of Waterloo.”

IAN GOULDEN, Dean, Faculty of Mathematics

Researchers at IQC aim to harness the

quantum laws of nature to develop powerful

new devices that will transform technology

and drive the 21st-century economy.

Launched in 2002, the institute has grown to become

the world’s largest centre for quantum information

research, and is establishing Waterloo and Canada

as the world’s “Quantum Valley.”

Theoretical and experimental researchers at IQC are

taming the quantum world to unlock the incredible

potential of quantum technologies, including ultra-

powerful computers, unbreakable cryptography,

quantum sensors and more. The Mike & Ophelia

Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre gives IQC researchers

the cutting-edge tools and collaborative opportunities

they need to lead the quantum revolution.

Mike &

Ophelia Lazaridis

QU

AN

TU

M-N

AN

O C

EN

TR

E

Arthur Carty

Executive Director

Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology

UN

IVE

RSIT

Y O

F W

AT

ER

LOO

| Th

e Waterlo

o In

stitute fo

r Nano

technolo

gy

The Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology

7

The advent of nanotechnology has been

called the next industrial revolution.

At the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology,

researchers are assembling tiny nanoelectronic

components, atom by atom, and growing nanowires

with diameters 100,000 times smaller than a human hair.

Through a multi-faceted approach – with research into

nano-materials, nano-electronics, nano-biosystems and

nano-instrumentation – scientists at the institute are

making advances that promise to transform medicine,

electronics and energy. With the largest undergraduate

nanotechnology engineering program in Canada,

WIN is poised to lead this quickly emerging field. The

decade ahead will see WIN become a global leader in

the enabling technology that touches every segment

of industry and society. The University of Waterloo’s

pioneering nanotechnology engineering program,

the largest in Canada, will produce the next generation

of leaders for this exciting field.

“The University of Waterloo is the unequivocal

vanguard of nanotechnology in Canada. The

research facilities within the Mike & Ophelia

Lazaridis Quantum Nano-Centre will enable

our scientists to carry out research and make

discoveries that will have the potential to

fundamentally change the world.”

TERRY MCMAHON, Dean, Faculty of Science

Mike &

Ophelia Lazaridis

QU

AN

TU

M-N

AN

O C

EN

TR

E

UN

IVE

RSIT

Y O

F W

AT

ER

LOO

| It had

to H

app

en H

ere

It had to Happen Here

9

The building is a continuation of the university’s

proud tradition of scientific leadership,

entrepreneurial spirit and forward-thinking

innovation. Building upon the University of

Waterloo’s long-established strengths in

mathematics and computer science – and

capitalizing on our enterprising tech ecosystem –

this new centre will keep Waterloo and Canada

at the leading edge of discovery.

The University of Waterloo provided the perfect

fertile soil for this one-of-a-kind building.

Nowhere else in the world could such a symbiotic

partnership between the private sector,

governments and academia take root and flourish.

The breakthroughs made here will further establish

the University of Waterloo and Canada as global

leaders in quantum-nano research and innovation.

The Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-

Nano Centre represents the next giant

leap for the University of Waterloo.

Mike &

Ophelia Lazaridis

QU

AN

TU

M-N

AN

O C

EN

TR

E

WITH THANKS TO OUR generous donors and to the

Government of Canada and

the Government of Ontario

for supporting this project.

University of Waterloo200 University Avenue WestWaterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1uwaterloo.ca

Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis QUANTUM-NANO CENTRE

DESIGN CREATIVE SERVICES, UNIVERSITY OF WATERLOO C907269