Towards a Quantum Future

Dear Reader, Since the launch of our journal Advanced Quantum Technologies (QUTE for short) in 2018, we have been witnessing plenty of very promising research initiatives and activities in the diverse fields of quantum science, quantum materials, and quantum technologies. Key questions like “Where is quantum technology taking us? What are challenges and perspectives?” led our Editorial Advisor Rainer Blatt to edit a special issue Advancing Quantum Technologies – Chances and Challenges that we published in November 2020 (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/25119044/2020/3/11). It broadly showcases how to master quantum phenomena for communication, metrology, sensing, simulation, and computation purposes. In a related virtual mini-symposium Rainer Blatt invited the authors Christoph Becher, Dagmar Bruss, Klemens Hammerer, Dieter Meschede, Christian Ospelkaus, and Robert Raussendorf to share their visions of the quantum future, which culminated in a vivid discussion (https://www.workcast.com/register?cpak=6284277449925096). Yet another recent quantum science webinar targeting a large Chinese audience featured our authors Tongcang Li and Yongjian Han who gave talks on quantum simulation in optical systems and quantum spin optomechanics, respectively. Further activities are being planned for 2021 in order to stay in close contact with the quantum community even during the pandemic. Earlier in 2020 Mohamed Benyoucef, Anthony Bennett, Stephan Götzinger, and Chaoyang Lu threw the spotlight on Photonic Quantum Technologies by editing a special issue (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/25119044/2020/3/2). The topics addressed include hybrid integration of single-photon emitters, cavity QED and light–matter interactions at the nanoscale, on-chip integration of entangled photon sources, and incorporating color centers into nanophotonic structures. Fabrication of suspended converters, single-photon emission at the telecom wavelength, molecule-based single-photon sources, quantum emitter–plasmonic cavity coupling, vertically coupled quantum dot systems, and optomechanical coupling are also discussed. We are happy to announce that our young and growing journal is being indexed in Web of Science. We are confident that the enhanced visibility of QUTE will trigger increasing submission numbers and a growing impact on the thriving field of quantum science and technology. Table 1 lists the presently most cited articles, exemplifying the broad spectrum of review-type and original research content contributed by authors from all over the world. Wiley has a number of agreements in place with institutions and funders to help authors publish open access and ensure compliance with open access policies. Your institution may be able to help with open access Article Publication Charges (APCs) that may be covered in full or part for affiliated authors publishing in Wiley fully open access journals or in a subscription journal through OnlineOpen. Find out if your institution or funder will cover your open access APCs and make your article open access: https://authorservices.wiley.com/author-resources/Journal-Authors/open-access/affiliation-policies-payments/institutional-funder-payments.html There are also several national deals where authors from an institution affiliated with an open access deal may publish primary research and review articles open access at no charge to the author. This applies to, e.g., Austria, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Norway, and the United Kingdom. For more information and to view eligibility criteria: https://authorservices.wiley.com/author-resources/Journal-Authors/open-access/affiliation-policies-payments/index.html Nonetheless, QUTE is a hybrid journal, i.e., also publishing subscription content following the Copyright Transfer Agreement, which is free of charge to authors who do not possess open access publication funds. To make the licensing process easier, a new tool was rolled out prompting all license signing (Copyright Transfer Agreements or Creative Commons licenses) to the Author Services Platform. Corresponding authors, especially those who are eligible for OnlineOpen, can choose the most suitable publication conditions for their articles in QUTE. We would like to sincerely thank our authors, reviewers, Advisory Board members, and readers, for entrusting our journal with their research and expertise. We wish you all the best, and a happy and healthy new year. Kind regards, QUTE editorial team P.S. The editorial team is happy to receive overview articles or any kind of proposals, as well as your input and comments at advquantumtech@wiley.com