On June 7, 2024, the world stepped into a thrilling new chapter of scientific discovery when the United Nations declared 2025 as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology (IYQ). Celebrating a century since the birth of quantum mechanics, this global initiative is designed to increase public understanding of quantum technologies and their potential to revolutionize our lives.Picture standing on the brink of the most significant technological revolution since the advent of the internet—a future where problems could be solved a million times faster than on any current computer. That’s the promise of quantum technology, a field grounded in the eerie and extraordinary principles of quantum mechanics, which explains nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles.This scientific journey started over a hundred years ago with brilliant minds like Professor Satyendra Nath Bose and Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman from India, who dared to explore how tiny particles operate in ways that seem completely alien to the everyday world. Today, in 2025, India, along with other nations, is pushing the boundaries of these discoveries through initiatives like the National Quantum Mission (NQM). With a hefty funding allocation, the mission aims to catapult India to the forefront of quantum knowledge by developing quantum computers, secure communication networks, and highly sensitive magnetometers.Consider a world where your online communications and transactions are so secure that no hacker could ever intercept them. That’s the potential of quantum cryptography, which uses the principles of quantum mechanics to forge codes that are theoretically unbreakable. Or envision a medical scenario where a quantum-enhanced MRI could detect illnesses before any physical symptoms manifest, thanks to unprecedented precision.But the impact of quantum technology extends beyond just nifty gadgets and secure communications. It could unlock secrets of the natural world. Quantum theory is being applied to decipher how birds navigate across continents and how plants perform photosynthesis at the molecular level. Insights from these studies could revolutionize energy management and environmental conservation.With the IYQ underway, schools might soon introduce quantum science fairs or workshops. Imagine programming a quantum computer during a computer science class or applying quantum principles to develop new approaches for tackling climate change or enhancing energy efficiency.World Quantum Day, observed on April 14th, marks the commencement of a myriad of activities globally. From talks by quantum physicists to interactive experiments at science museums, the event offers everyone a peek into the quantum realm. Students could experience the thrill of using quantum communication setups that are impervious to hacking or engage in simulations demonstrating how quantum computers will tackle complex equations in moments—calculations that would otherwise take millennia on conventional computers.In India, enthusiasm around the NQM is tangible. With ambitious plans to construct quantum computers with up to 1000 qubits and establish expansive quantum communication networks, the future seems closer than ever. India's commitment to nurturing a dynamic ecosystem for quantum technology signals a wave of new career paths and opportunities in areas like quantum computing, quantum cryptography, and quantum engineering. For young minds, this could be a field where future breakthroughs or seminal technologies emerge.As we look towards 2025, it's an open invitation for you to join a journey that goes beyond understanding the cosmos—to reshaping it through the power of quantum science. Whether you aspire to be a scientist, a creative thinker, or a pioneering entrepreneur, the quantum world awaits your contributions. Quantum levitationThrough a phenomenon known as quantum locking, scientists can make a superconductor disk float or be suspended in mid-air above or below a magnetic track. This is due to the Meissner effect, where a superconductor expels all magnetic fields, creating a lock with the magnetic field in a specific configuration.Quantum jittersQuantum particles are never, ever still. Even at absolute zero, where all classical motion stops, quantum particles still exhibit what is called zero-point energy, causing them to jitter due to the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, which states that we cannot know both the position and the velocity of a quantum particle simultaneously.Two places at onceQuantum superposition allows particles like electrons and photons to be in multiple places at the same time. This isn't just theoretical—experiments like the famous double-slit experiment demonstrate that particles can act as both particles and waves, appearing in different locations simultaneously.Quantum Cheshire CatIn a phenomenon named after the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland, a particle and its property (like spin or polarisation) can be separated and detected in different places. This bizarre occurrence has been demonstrated in experiments and challenges our traditional concepts of how objects exist. Quantum tunnelingThis quantum effect allows particles to pass through barriers that they theoretically shouldn't be able to, according to classical physics. This isn't just a curious anomaly—it's a process that plays a critical role in nuclear fusion within stars and has practical applications in the creation of tunnel diodes and the scanning tunneling microscope.Watching changes realityIn the quantum world, the act of watching or measuring can change the outcome. Known as the observer effect, it's famously illustrated in the quantum thought experiment of Schrödinger's cat, where a cat in a box can be considered simultaneously alive and dead until it is observed.Quantum randomnessIn classical physics, if you know all the initial conditions of a system, you can predict all future outcomes. In quantum mechanics, outcomes are inherently probabilistic. This means events don’t have definite outcomes until they're measured, and it's possible to calculate only the probability of finding the system in a particular state.Entangled timeJust as particles can become entangled in space, recent theoretical developments suggest that time can also become entangled. This could mean that the state of a particle in the future could affect its state in the past, something that fundamentally challenges our understanding of cause and effect.Quantum immortalityA thought experiment in quantum mechanics suggests that the multiverse could essentially render someone immortal. According to this interpretation, a version of you could continue to exist in a parallel universe regardless of what happens in this one.Quantum communication in spaceScientists have successfully used quantum entanglement to send encrypted data between two points on Earth using a satellite in space, demonstrating that quantum communication can operate over vast distances, potentially leading to a secure, space-based quantum internet.
