The IT4Innovations Users Conference 2025 featured a strong representation from the Institute of Physics of Materials of the Czech Academy of Sciences.
Our researchers — Dr. Martin Friák, Mgr. Valentína Berecová, Bc. Kateřina Dočkalová, and Bc. Vojtěch Vašina — presented their work and had the unique opportunity to see the first quantum computer in the Czech Republic.
The IT4Innovations Users Conference 2025, hosted by the IT4Innovations National Supercomputing Center at the VSB – Technical University of Ostrava, brought together researchers using the centre’s computing resources to share their experiences and present results achieved through high-performance computing.
The Institute of Physics of Materials of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IPM CAS) was represented by Dr. Martin Friák, Mgr. Valentína Berecová, Bc. Kateřina Dočkalová, and Bc. Vojtěch Vašina, who presented their research in the field of computational materials modeling and quantum-mechanical simulations.
Thanks to the long-term collaboration between IPM CAS and IT4Innovations, our researchers have access to the most powerful computing systems in the Czech Republic — Karolina, Barbora, and NVIDIA DGX-2 — and now also to the first quantum computer in the country. This newly installed VLQ computer, equipped with 24 superconducting qubits arranged in a star topology, represents a significant milestone in the development of quantum technologies in Central Europe. Our scientists had the unique opportunity to see this groundbreaking machine in person.
The IT4Innovations National Supercomputing Center is a leading Czech research, development, and innovation hub in the fields of high-performance computing (HPC), high-performance data analysis (HPDA), artificial intelligence (AI), and quantum computing (QC). It operates the most advanced supercomputing systems in the Czech Republic and is part of the e-INFRA CZ strategic research infrastructure, together with CESNET and CERIT-SC. This infrastructure is included in the Roadmap of Large Research Infrastructures of the Czech Republic compiled by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports.
Since 2013, IT4Innovations has been providing cutting-edge computing technologies and services to research teams from both academia and industry, supporting competitiveness and innovation in Czech science and engineering. The centre also contributes to the operation of the EuroHPC supercomputers as part of the European network and recently signed an agreement for the installation of the VLQ quantum computer, to be fully operational in 2025.
The participation of IPM CAS at this conference demonstrates that our materials research fully utilizes the most advanced computational infrastructure available in the Czech Republic, combining the strengths of high-performance and quantum computing. Through this collaboration, our institute continues to advance modern materials science, predictive modeling, and Industry 4.0 applications, entering the new era of quantum technologies.
