QIS@Perlmutter Issues 2026 Call for Proposals

NERSC is seeking project proposals to conduct research using the Perlmutter supercomputer in the area of quantum information science (QIS) through its QIS@Perlmutter program. 

Awards are for the NERSC 2026 Allocation Year (AY), which runs through January 16, 2027. Projects must be executed within the allocation year. Awardees will be required to report progress regularly on a bi-monthly basis and also provide a summary at the end of the project.

Who should apply?

Applicants with projects in all areas of quantum information science are encouraged to apply, including but not limited to the following:

• Quantum simulation of materials and chemical systems

• Algorithms for compilation and simulation of quantum circuits

• Error mitigation for quantum computing

• Development/testing of hybrid quantum-classical algorithms

• Software development for the quantum computing stack

• Interactions between quantum computing systems and/or accelerators and traditional HPC systems

Applicants do not have to be current NERSC users. 

Awards

Up to 20,000 Perlmutter graphical processing unit (GPU) node hours may be awarded to accepted proposals. (Each Perlmutter GPU node contains four A100 GPUs.) 

The latest versions of the cuQuantum and CUDA-QX libraries from NVIDIA are available for both state vector and tensor network simulations on GPUs, as well as other relevant software, including Qiskit, PennyLane, Quimb, and ITensor.

Successful applicants will also have the opportunity to partner with NERSC and Nvidia staff on utilizing GPUs, optimizing workflows, and addressing other related issues in their projects.

Criteria

Proposals must explore a quantum information science subject, and will also be evaluated for the following: 

• A demonstrated plan to take advantage of the salient features of the Perlmutter system (6,000+ NVIDIA A100 GPUs, all-flash scratch file system)

• A demonstrated plan to take advantage of the new capabilities in the upcoming Doudna supercomputer (NVIDIA Vera-Rubin CPU-GPU platform, High-speed Quantum-X800 InfiniBand networking platform, interactive workflows)

• A strong benefit to current or future Department of Energy Office of Science research objectives or society at large

Proposals that meet one or more of these criteria will receive priority consideration.

Eligibility

This is an open call and is not limited to current NERSC users. However, because NERSC is a Department of Energy Office of Science national user facility for open scientific research, all research results must be published in open scientific journals or presented in open forums. 

Projects must also comply with the standard NERSC appropriate use policies. If the proposed research is not federally funded, an “Institutional User Agreement” will be required.

How and when to apply

Applications are currently being accepted online and will be reviewed on a rolling basis. 

Submissions made by March 1, 2026, will be given full consideration.