Quantumsimulation

Insightreport

June2023

QUANTUMSIMULATIONINSIGHTREPORT

Executivesummary

ThisreportistheeighthpatentinsightreportpublishedbytheEuropeanPatentOffice(EPO),andthefourth

reportrelatedtoquantumtechnologies.1Itsobjectiveistoprovideanoverviewofimportantpatenttrendsinthefieldofsecond-generation(2G)quantumsimulationtechnologies.

Thereportsummarisestheresultsofpatentanalyses

whichwerecarriedoutjointlybysubject-matter

specialistsandpatentknowledgeexpertsattheEPO.Forthisstudy,publiclyavailablepatentinformationdrawnfromtheEPO’sdatabasesofworldwidepatentdatawasanalysed.Patentinformationconstitutesaveryrich

sourceoftechnicalinformationoninventionsforwhichpatentprotectionwassoughtbasedonthecommercialexpectationsoftheapplicants.Patentinformationoftenincludestechnicalandotherinformationthatisnot

availablefromanyothersource.

Thisreportmaybehelpfulasasourceofinformationonquantumsimulation.Themethodologyonwhichthis

reportisbasedcanbeusedfreely,i.e.everyonecanadaptthechosensearchandanalysisapproachtotheirneeds,forexampletofollowtrendsanddevelopmentsinotherestablishedoremergingtechnicalfields.

Whilethenumberofinventionsinthefieldof2G

quantumsimulationisstillratherlow,ithasincreased

dynamicallyoverthelastdecadeataratewhichiswell

abovetheincreasegenerallyobservedacrossallfields

oftechnology.Thefigureonthenextpageshowsthe

numberofso-calledInternationalPatentFamiliesrelatingto2Gquantumsimulationtechnologiesandthenumberinalltechnicalfieldsbytheyearwhentheunderlying

inventionsweremadepubliclyavailableforthefirsttimeandcouldinfluencetheactivitiesofcompetitorsand

otherresearchers.

TheEPOpatentinsightreportonquantumsimulationinanutshell:

—Numberofinventionsinthefieldofsecond-

generationquantumsimulationmultipliedoverthelastdecade

—Highergrowthratethanacrossallfieldsoftechnologyingeneral

—HighproportionofInternationalpatent

applications,suggestinghigheconomic

expectationswithregardtothetechnologiesinquestionandmultinationalcommercialisationstrategy

—Themostactivepatentapplicantsinthefieldof

quantumsimulationarecompanies.ThemajorityofthemarelocatedintheUnitedStates,followedbyCanada,Europe,China,andJapan.SomeUS-baseduniversitiesalsoplayedanimportantrole

Patentapplicantsinthefieldofquantumsimulation

reliedheavilyonthefollowingpatentapplicationroutes:Internationalpatentapplicationsthatmayresultin

patentprotectioninmorethan150countriesworldwide,USapplications,JPapplications,EPapplications,CN

applicationsandCAapplications.ThehighproportionofInternationalpatentapplicationsmaybeinterpretedasanindicationofthesignificanteconomicexpectationsofthepatentapplicantswithregardtothetechnologiesinquestion,aswellasacorrespondingmultinational

commercialisationstrategy.

1MoreinformationaboutEPOpatentinsightreportsandthelist

ofcurrentlyavailablereportsisavailableat

/insight-reports

<

Contents|

Executivesummary

|1.Introduction

|2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

|02

Quantumsimulation:

NumberofInternationalPatentFamilies

Alltechnicalfields:

NumberofInternationalPatentFamilies

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

QUANTUMSIMULATIONINSIGHTREPORT

Figure

Quantumsimulation:NumberofInternationalPatentFamiliesperearliestpublicationyear.

Numberofinventionsbyearliestpublicationyearinthefieldof2Gquantumsimulationtechnologies,limitedtoInternationalPatentFamilies.InternationalPatentFamiliesgrouptogetherpatentdocumentsrelatingtothesameorsimilarinventionspublishedbyatleasttwopatent

authorities.Itisgenerallyassumedthatpatentapplicantsattributegreatereconomicpotentialtotheunderlyinginventionsofthesepatentfamilies,andthattheytendtoseekmoreextensivecommercialisationfromageographicalpointofview.

140

120

100

80

60

40

20

0

700000

600000

500000

400000

300000

200000

100000

0

Earliestpublicationyear

Themostactiveapplicantsinthefieldof2Gquantum

simulationarecompanies.Mostofthemarelocated

intheUnitedStatesofAmerica,followedbyCanada,

Europe,ChinaandJapan.Theexceptionstothisare

asmallnumberofUS-baseduniversities,suchasthe

UniversityofMarylandandHarvardUniversity.Thelist

ofmostactiveapplicantsinthefieldsince2004isheadedbyGoogle,followedbyIBM.Thepicturebecomesmore

nuancedwhenlookingatdevelopmentoverthelast

fewyearsinmoredetail.Thesituationinthe2010swascomparedtotheperiod2020-2021.WhereasGoogle,

IBMandMicrosoftheadthelistinbothperiods,therestoftheapplicantsarequitedifferent,suggestingarealignmentofresearchanddevelopmentactivitiesinthefield.

Inviewofthehighmomentuminthefieldofquantumsimulation,theEPOintendstoupdatethisreportinthefutureandtotakeacloserlookintohowsub-sectorsinthefieldofquantumsimulationhavedeveloped

anddiversified.

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Contents|

Executivesummary

|1.Introduction

|2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

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QUANTUMSIMULATIONINSIGHTREPORT

Contents

Executivesummary02

Abbreviations05

Glossary06

1.Introduction07

1.1Aboutthisreport07

1.2Introductiontoquantumsimulation08

2.Methodologyandsourcesofpatentinformationused12

2.1Usingpatentinformation12

2.2MethodologyforthisEPOpatentinsightreport12

2.3Patentretrieval13

2.3.1Datasourcesandtoolsused14

3.Analysis15

4.Conclusionsandoutlook28

Annex29

Notesonthelimitsofthestudy29

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2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

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QUANTUMSIMULATIONINSIGHTREPORT

Abbreviations

2GSecond-generation

CA

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheCanadianIntellectualPropertyOffice

CN

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheChinaNationalIntellectualPropertyAdministration

CPC

CooperativePatentClassification

DE

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheGermanPatentandTradeMarkOffice

DOCDB

EPOworldwidebibliographicdata

EP

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheEuropeanPatentOffice

EPO

EuropeanPatentOffice

EPC

EuropeanPatentConvention

GB

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheIntellectualPropertyOffice(UnitedKingdom)

IPC

InternationalPatentClassification

JP

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheJapanPatentOffice

KR

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheKoreanIntellectualPropertyOffice

PCT

PatentCooperationTreaty

US

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheUnitedStatesPatentandTrademarkOffice

WIPO

WorldIntellectualPropertyOrganization

WO

Two-lettercodeusedtolabelpatentapplicationsprocessedandpublishedbytheWorldIntellectualPropertyOrganizationunderthePatentCooperationTreaty

<

Contents|

Executivesummary|

1.Introduction|

2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

|05

QUANTUMSIMULATIONINSIGHTREPORT

Glossary

Espacenet

FreeonlinepatentsearchingservicedevelopedbytheEPO.Includesinformationonmorethan140milliondocumentsfrom100patentoffices.Espacenetisavailableat

.

Internationalpatent

application

PatentapplicationfiledunderthePatentCooperationTreaty.AnInternationalpatentapplicationmayresultinpatentprotectioninmorethan150countries.

InternationalPatent

Family

Apatentfamilyhavingpatentfamilymemberspublishedbyatleasttwodifferentpatentauthorities.

Invention

Apracticaltechnicalsolutiontoaproblem.

Jurisdiction

Country(territory)forwhichapatentorrelatedintellectualpropertyrightmaybegrantedbythecorrespondingintellectualpropertyoffice.

Patent

Legaltitlegivingthepatentowner(s)therighttoexcludeothersfromusingthe

protectedinventioninacommercialcontext.Apatentbuildsonwhatiscalledthe“patentspecification”,whichdisclosestherelevantdetailsdefiningtheprotected inventionalongwithotherrelevantinformation.

Patentapplication

Inthefieldofpatentinformation,theexpression“patentapplication”isusedforboththepatentapplicationitselfandthepatentapplicationpublishedasadocument.

Patentclassification

system

Thesetofpatentclassificationsymbolsassignedtocategorisethetechnicalsubject-

matterofapatentorutilitymodel.Therearevariouspatentclassificationsystemsusedtodaybynational,regionalandinternationalpatentoffices.

Patentfamily

Asetofpatentdocumentscoveringthesameorsimilartechnicalcontent,dependingonthepatentfamilydefinition.

Thesizeofapatentfamily(familysize)referstothenumberofpatentdocumentsinthatpatentfamily.

ADOCDBpatentfamilyisasetofpatentdocumentsrelatingtopatentapplications

claimingpriorityofthesameearlierapplications.ThetechnicalcontentcoveredbythepatentapplicationsinaDOCDBpatentfamilyisconsideredtobeidentical.

Priorityapplication

Inventionscanbeprotectedbypatentsandutilitymodelsinmorethanonecountry.Onceanapplicanthasfiledafirstapplication,calledthepriorityapplication,ina

memberstateoftheParisConvention,theapplicanthas12monthstofileapplicationsforthesameinventioninothermemberstatesoftheconvention.Duringthisperiod,theoriginalfilingdatecanbeclaimedastheeffectivefilingdate,or“prioritydate”,forsubsequentapplications.

Quantumsimulation

Quantumsimulationisthemodellingofacomplexquantummechanicalsystembyanothersystemundercontrolledconditionstosystematicallystudyandpredictthebehaviourofthesimulatedsystem.

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Executivesummary|

1.Introduction|

2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

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QUANTUMSIMULATIONINSIGHTREPORT

1.Introduction

1.1Aboutthisreport

ThisreportistheeighthpatentinsightreportpublishedbytheEPO,andthefourthreportrelatedtoquantumtechnologies.2Itsummarisestheresultsofpatent

analysesinthefieldofquantumsimulationwhichwerecarriedoutjointlybysubject-matterspecialistsand

patentknowledgeexpertsattheEPO.

Quantumsimulationtechnologiesaredeveloping

dynamically,withhundredsofscientificandtechnical

publicationsandpatentprotectionbeingsoughtfor

numerousinventions.Thisdevelopmentisbeingspurred

onbyalargenumberofactivecompanies,including

leadingtechnologycompaniesandfundingprogrammes.TheQuantumFlagshipinitiative,whichwassetupby

theEuropeanCommissionandmakesanimportantcontributiontoresearchandthecommercialisationofquantumtechnologies,maybementionedhereasanimportantexample(seeFigure1).

Theobjectiveofthisreportistoprovideanoverviewofimportantpatenttrendsinthefieldofsecond-generationquantumsimulationtechnologies.3Forthisstudy,publiclyavailablepatentinformationdrawnfromtheEPO’s

databasesofworldwidepatentdatawasanalysed.

Figure1

TheQuantumFlagshipintiative

OUANTUM

FLAGSHIP

Launchedin2018,theQuantumFlagshipinitiative

isoneofthelargestandmostambitiousresearch

initiativesestablishedbytheEuropeanUnion.It

aimstoconsolidateandexpandscientificexcellenceandleadershipinEuropeintheareaofquantum

technologies.Theinitiativebringstogethermorethan5000scientistsandengineers,entrepreneursand

policymakers..

Withabudgetofmorethan€1billionoveraperiod

ofmorethan10years,theinitiativeaimstoreinforceEurope’sroleasaleaderinthefieldofquantum

technologies.Forthispurpose,ithasthefollowinggoals:—tofosteracompetitiveEuropeanquantumindustry—toexpandscientificexcellenceinthefieldof

quantumresearch

—tomakeEuropeanattractiveregionforbusinessesandinvestmentsinquantumtechnologies

—tousequantumtechnologiesforbettersolutionstoimportantchallenges,e.g.intheareasoftheenvironment,healthanddatasecurity.

TheactivitiesoftheQuantumFlagshipinitiativecentrearoundthefollowingmainfields:basicquantum

research,quantumcomputing,quantumsimulation,quantummetrologyandsensing,andquantum

communication.

ValuingtheimportantroleoftheQuantumFlagship

initiativeandofquantumtechnologiesforsocietyandtheeconomyinEurope,theEPOhasdevelopedaseriesofEPOpatentinsightreportsonquantumtechnologiesalignedwiththemaintopicsoftheinitiative.

Topic

IPublicationyear

Quantum

metrologyandsensing

12019

Quantum

computing

2023

Quantum

simulation(thisreport)

12023

Quantum

communication

12024(planned)1

Oncepublished,thesereportsandsupplementary

informationaremadeavailableat

/insight-reports

.

2MoreinformationaboutEPOpatentinsightreportsandthelistofcurrentlyavailablereportsisavailableat

/insight-reports

3Moreinformationabout2Gquantumtechnologiesandthe

differencesbetweenthesetechnologiesandearlierdevelopments

isavailableinJ.P.DowlingandG.J.Milburn,“Quantum

technology:thesecondquantumrevolution”,Philosophical

TransactionsoftheRoyalSocietyA361,2003,1655-74.

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Contents|

Executivesummary|

1.Introduction

|2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

|07

QUANTUMSIMULATION

INSIGHTREPORT

Patentinformationconstitutesaveryrichsourceof

technicalinformationoninventionsforwhichpatent

protectionwassoughtbasedonthecommercial

expectationsoftheapplicants.Patentinformationoftenincludestechnicalandotherinformationthatisnot

availablefromanyothersource.

Togatherrelevantpatentinformationasthebasisforthisreport,searchstrategiesweredeveloped

usingmeaningfulkeywordsandappropriatepatent

classificationsymbols.Thesesearchstrategies,which

weredesignedtostrikeabalancebetweencompletenessandcapturingasfewunrelateddocumentsaspossibleintheresultsets,werethenusedtocreateabasicdatasetofsuitablepatentdocumentsfromtheEPO’sdatabasesofworldwidepatentdata.Thisbasicdatasetformedthebasisforthesubsequentpatentanalyses.

Thisreportmaybehelpfulasasourceofinformationonquantumsimulation.Themethodologyonwhichthis

reportisbasedcanbeusedfreely,i.e.everyonecanadaptthechosensearchandanalysisapproachtotheirneeds,forexampletofollowtrendsanddevelopmentsinotherestablishedoremergingtechnicalfields.

1.2Introductiontoquantumsimulation

Quantumeffects,suchasthosegivingrisetothecoloursofeverydaymaterials,haveplayedanimportantrole

inthelifeofhumanssinceancienttimes,butitwas

notuntilthe19thcenturythatquantumeffectsand

theirphysicalfoundationsdevelopedintoakeyfocusofresearch.Withtheestablishmentofquantumphysicsattheendofthatcentury,itbecamepossibletodescribematterandelectromagneticradiation,suchasvisible

light,accuratelyontheatomicscale.

Numeroustechnologiesthathavebecomeanintegral

partofmodernlifebuildontheseachievements.

Examplesincludelasersandsemiconductors,whichareafirmlyestablishedpartofnearlyallelectricalappliancesanddevices.Ithasbecomedifficulttoimaginealife

withoutmobilephonesorcomputers.

Thesetechnologiesbelongtothefirstgenerationof

quantumtechnologies,whichbeganinthemiddleofthe20thcentury.Theadventofanew,second,generationofquantumtechnologieshasraisedagreatdealofinterest.Withprecisecontrolofthequantum-physicalpropertiesandbehaviourofindividualorasmallnumberofparticles

suchasatomsandphotonsbecomingpossible,awaveofnewapplicationsisonthehorizon.

Inthelasttwodecades,researchintoquantum

technologieshasmaderemarkableprogress,enablingitsimplementationincross-disciplinaryfieldsof

appliedresearch,andconsequentlyitsindustrialisation.Estimatessuggestthatquantumtechnologieswill

becomepartofmajorindustriesintheshorttomediumterm,dependingontheirnature.45

Quantumtechnologieswillhaveanimpactonmany

technicalfieldsandindustrysectors.Onedomain

thathasreceivedparticularattentionisquantum

computing.Thisisnosurprise,asthistechnology

promisesmajoradvancesinmanytechnicalareassuchasdrugdevelopmentandmaterialsresearch.6Quantumcomputingisdevelopingmoreandmoredynamically,withalargenumberofactivecompaniesandfundingprogrammes,suchastheQuantumFlagshipinitiative,atthenationalandinternationallevel.

OtherdomainscoveredbytheQuantumFlagship

initiativeincludequantumcommunication,with

potentialapplicationsforsecureITarchitectures,andmetrologyandsensing,whichareexpectedtoleadtobettersensorsandmeasuringdevices.7

Adomainofspecificinterestisquantumsimulation.

Quantumsimulationisthemodellingofacomplex

quantummechanicalsystembyanothersystemundercontrolledconditionstosystematicallystudyandpredictthebehaviourofthesimulatedsystem.

Quantumsimulationisdistinguishedfromuniversally

programmablequantumcomputing,whichiscomputingusingquantumphenomena.Incontrasttowhathappensinauniversallyprogrammablequantumcomputer,therelationshipandinteractionsofindividualelements

inquantumsimulatorsaredeterminedbyhardware

structures.Box1illustratesthenatureofquantum

simulatorsusingtheexamplesoftwoinventionsdisclosedinpatentdocuments.

4See

QuantumManifesto:aneweraoftechnology,2016

5SeeA.M.Lewisetal.,“Quantumtechnologies:implications

forEuropeanpolicy.Issuesfordebate”,2016.

6Seethe

EPOpatentinsightreportonquantumcomputing

foradetailedoverviewofpatentfilingtrendsinthisfield.

7SeetheEPOpatentinsightreportonquantummetrologyand

sensingformoreinformationonpatentfilingtrendsinthisfield.

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|2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

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QUANTUMSIMULATIONINSIGHTREPORT

Box1:Examplesofquantumsimulation

US2009173936A1:

Quantumprocessor

Thispatentapplicationpresentsamulti-chip

processorcomprisingaconnectionbetweendifferentportionsoftheintegratedcircuit.Thisconnection

issuitableforacoherenttransferofquantum

informationbetweendifferentpartsofaquantuminformationprocessingunit.

Inthispatentapplication,quantumsimulationis

mentionedasapossibleareaofapplication,alongwithotherwaysofquantuminformationprocessingsuchasfreelyprogrammablequantumcomputing.

Thepatentapplicationillustratesthechallenges

thatneedtobeovercomeatthehardwarelevelforasuccessfulimplementationofquantumsimulation.

Theinventionpresentedaddressesbasicproblemsinthephysicalrealisationofquantumsimulatorsthat

aroseatanearlystageofdevelopmentoftherelevanttechnology.

Thepatentapplicationalsoillustratesthe

interrelationshipbetweenquantumsimulationand

otherkindsofquantuminformationprocessingthat

sharesimilarproblemstobeaddressed.Thefactthatthepatentapplicantmadeanexplicitreferenceto

quantumsimulationinthiscontextindicatesthe

applicant’scommercialinterestinquantumsimulation.

EP1672569A1:

Amethodofperformingaquantumalgorithmforsimulatingageneticalgorithm

Thispatentapplicationpresentsageneticalgorithmtobeperformedonquantuminformationprocessingdevices.Oneofthesedevicesisdescribedasa

hardwareimplementationofthealgorithm,i.e.aquantumsimulatoraccordingtothedefinitionusedforthisreport.

Thepatentapplicationisanexampleofhowquantumsimulationmaybeconsideredatanalgorithmic

levelinthecontextofdifferentpossiblewaysof

implementationbutwithoutadetaileddescriptionofthehardware.Again,thefactthatthepatent

applicantsexplicitlyrefertoquantumsimulation

indicatestheirawarenessofquantumsimulationandtheircommercialinterestinthistechnology.

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1.Introduction

|2.Methodology|3.Analysis|4.Conclusions|Annex

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QUANTUMSIMULATION

INSIGHTREPORT

Box2:TheEuropeanpatentsystemandinventionsinthefieldofquantumsimulation

TheEuropeanpatentsystemandinventionsinthefieldofquantumsimulation

TheEuropeanpatentsystemmakesitpossibleto

obtainEuropeanpatentsvalidinupto39member

statesoftheEuropeanPatentConvention(EPC)on

thebasisofasingleapplication.1Europeanpatents

havethesamelegaleffectsasnationalpatentsineachcountryforwhichtheyaregranted.Asof2023,itwillbepossibletorequestunitaryeffectforagranted

EPpatent,whichprovidesuniformpatentprotectioninupto25memberstatesoftheEuropeanUnion.

EuropeanpatentsaregrantedbytheEuropeanPatentOfficeinacentralised,cost-effectiveandtime-savingprocedureconductedineitherEnglish,Frenchor

German.

Everypatentapplicationundergoessubstantive

examinationbeforeaEuropeanpatentisgrantedto

makesurethatinventionsforwhichpatentprotectionissoughtmeetalllegalrequirementssetoutinthe

EPC.Patentsaregrantedforinventionsacrossallfieldsoftechnologyiftheyarenew,involveaninventivestepandareindustriallyapplicable.Aninventionmeets

theserequirementsifitwasnotknowntothepublicinanyformpriortothe(earliest)filingdate,wasnotobvioustoaskilledpersonandcanbemanufacturedorusedindustrially.Inventionsinthefieldofquantumsimulationarenotanexceptiontothis.

Inventionsdirectedtomethodsofsimulationtypicallycomprisefeatureswhichfallunderthecategoryof

mathematicalmethods.Ifpatentprotectionwas

soughtfortheseactivitiesassuch,i.e.withoutany

technicalaspect,theywouldbeexcludedfrompatentprotectionundertheEPC.Methodsrelatedtoquantumsimulationareatleastpartiallycomputer-implementedanddonotfallunderthisexclusioncriterionifthey

provideafurthertechnicaleffect,i.e.havetechnicalcharacter.

1EuropeanpatentsmayalsobeeffectiveinsomecountriesthathavenotaccededtotheEPC(i.e.i

nextensionandvalidationstates).

Thetechnicalcharacterofquantumsimulation,asaspecifickindofsimulation,maybeestablishedbytheinteractionwithanexternalphysicalentityatthe

inputoroutputsideofthesimulation.Thetechnicalcharactermayalsobeestablishedbyaspecific

implementationofthesimulation,includinghardwareimplementation,orbyanintendedtechnicaluseof

simulationdata.Bycontrast,calculatednumerical

datareflectingthephysicalstateorthebehaviour

ofasystemorprocessexistingonlyasamodelinacomputer(inthequantumsimulator)usuallycannotcontributetothetechnicalcharacteroftheinvention,evenifitreflectsthebehaviouroftherealsystemorprocessadequately.

Thetechnicalornon-technicalnatureoffeaturesof

theinventionforwhichpatentprotectionissought

alsoplaysaroleduringtheassessmentoftheinventivestep.Applicantscannotrelyonnon-technicalfeaturestoestablishaninventivestep,butthesefeaturesmaybeusedinformulatingtheobjectivetechn